Open letter to President Macron of France.

Dear President Macron,

We have seen the worst of democracy when a traitor occupies the White House in the USA, namely Donald John Trump. Hopefully, by example, Europe will never face that assault from Russia which hides in extremist values. It was Russia after all that elected Trump in 2016 by stealing emails and submitting to The West’s computer technology and capacity to publish them. The presidential elections of 2016 was an act of war by Russia.

What is so concerning are the deadenders in the USA that seem to believe the violence, hate and insurrection of Trump should be permanent policy in the USA. Their loyalty to Trump may prove to be their folly if moderate Republicans actually become the next conservative power base. That all remains speculative, although anti-abortion platforms have seen Republican women elected to the US House.

I think it is time for the allies of the USA to assess their military power first as a single country and then as allies. 

There are former communist countries that found communism adverse to their people, hence, their economies. If communism was a benefit for these countries they would still be part of Russia, but, they aren't. Through great peril to the people and their leaders, they are now aligned with NATO. 

Ukraine, Georgia, Belarus, and Estonia have the greatest danger of an aggressive Russia that would plung NATO into war. On that same front is Finland which suffers the radiation pollution from Russia for it's many failed nuclear experiments and grossly unsafe nuclear power plants. Why are we waiting to face the real reality of Western prowess? In fear of a nuclear holocaust? It may come anyway allowing communist countries, including Cuba and Venezuela, more time to prepare. 

Russia has no real conventional force that could win a war with NATO. Even if joined by China, there are not enough assets of either country or expertise, to win a war against The West.

Why allow ourselves to think time will win out in peaceful achievements? Time is an ally to communists, not The West.

We have learned both from China and Russia pursuing peace and trusting it only gives them time to arm better and pose not just as a threat to peace, but, emerging as hostile nations no longer interested in peace.

The ability and expertise of NATO and USA allies from around the world in a conventional war would have Russia and China ended. The only real deterrent to war for Russia and China are nuclear weapons. I doubt Russia's nuclear weapons would deliver the fear that Putin believes he rightfully can claim.

I would be surprised if China decided the only path forward is assured mutual destruction. I am surprised even today that China calculates nuclear weapons as a deterrent to war. China has pursued sophisticated paths including space exploration in recent decades. Is China that invested in the idea of war to cause it's sacrifices to date to end in such destruction?

Some of China's accomplishments rival those of the USA, dare I say at least mimic them. Allowing nuclear weapons to cloud it's judgment of the future seems completely counterintuitive for China. Why build a sophisticated infrastructure of great accomplishments, great cities and seek out economic growth if all that is thrown away with a nuclear holocaust. So, I question China's loyalty to the Friendship Pact made with Russia in the year 2000. By now, two decades later, that alliance must seem lackluster to China. Quite possibly half-hearted enthusiasm for any involvement with war, too.

If in four years extremists manage to retake the USA in elections that would be a massive shift in power that would disadvantage The West and democracy. It would certainly end freedom in the USA.

I am forced to look at a Vladimir Putin who had a quick handshake for President Biden when the USA election outcome was obvious. I also see the Russian people and their unrest. Is it time for The West to take a stance with Russia it is most uncomfortable in pursuing? Are these next few years the real time provided by fate to secure the countries we love for the freedom and democracy that exists in them? Are the Russian people reaching for the same goals that would secure their democracy as well as ours? Are they longing to join Ukraine, Georgia, Belarus and Estonia? Is that what plagues Putin now?

I am forced to wonder if the future is safe for all our children from ruthless communist plans for us?

Best regards,

An American 

Love ballad to Vladimir Putin.

Two Russians walk into a Moscow nightclub.

One is Alexie Navalny and the other a business interest. The are sipping on vodka and talking about the news and sports. They like each other’s ideas and order several more snifters of vodka. 

The businessman says to Navalny, I challenge you to run against Putin for president and I will back you. 

Navalny says, “I thought we were going to begin a business together.”

Businessman says, “I think we just did.”

The rest is history.

Joe Manchin needs to stop the attitude...

 ...toward minority women. 

West Virginia is 93 percent Caucasian. Gender is divided about 50 to 50. 

First, Joe Manchin takes offense at Vice President Harris talking to West Virginians about the COVID relief bill and now Manchin is stating he is taking offense of Facebook posts by Neera Tanden. No

I think Joe Manchin needs to rethink his nonsense about minority women in government. Vice President Harris has a schedule she keeps. She has a right to her autonomy. She was attempting to help the party that is proving they can get the job done. What is Manchin’s problem?

Neera Tandan is highly qualified to do the job at OMB. She is a political activist as well. One has nothing to do with the other and Neera Tandan is perfectly capable of separating her politics from her job. I sincerely believe picking on minority women is a bad idea. 

To be clear Neera Tandan has worked on programs that have changed the face of this country. Most notably is the “Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act” which changed welfare forever. Why is she so talented within government? She is a Yale Law School graduate that loves people and is capable of handling the demands in Washington, DC.

Neera deserves the job. She has apologized for any internet posts that may have insulted Republicans. She means it. She feels bad about it. Thin skinned Republicans are no excuse for Joe Manchin to vote to keep her from serving in a job she will excel at and help bring good outcomes to the American people. It is time Senator Manchin get over himself and appreciate the expertise minority women are bringing to the work of government.

I think Democrats need to spend a little more time with the people of West Virginia. They are good folks, but, this is the 21st century where Americans care about each other regardless of their differences.

Court cases in Michigan including Flint are heating up.

Professor Hammer isn't afraid of the word racism and freely writes about it's influence in the Flint Water Crisis. Ultimately the country has to change. There is no reason for racism in the USA. These trials are important and while every defendant will plead not guilty and will state they have never been racist, those lies can't stand. 

February 19, 2021
By Peter J. Hammer

As the former governor of Michigan (click here) and eight other public officials are indicted for alleged crimes related to the Flint water contamination crisis, Wayne State Law Professor Peter J. Hammer writes that systems of spatial-structural racism underlie the event and must be addressed.

The trauma of the Flint water crisis, one of the greatest preventable humanitarian crises in American history, has never receded from the lives of the residents of Flint, Mich. The return of the crisis in the national news, however, gives us a time to reflect.

A $641 million federal civil class action settlement has been preliminarily approved, ostensibly the law’s best effort to make the victims “whole.” On a different legal front, nine former public officials, including former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R), have been indicted on 41 criminal charges.

How should America ultimately understand the legacy of the crisis? A foundational truth is that systems of spatial-structural racism lie at the roots of the Flint water crisis. I provided testimony to the Michigan Civil Rights Commission’s hearings on the role of race in the tragedy.

The commission’s report concluded: “Our review of Flint’s history clearly establishes that past racism played an important role in creating the conditions that allowed the water contamination crisis to occur…. Race, racialization, racism (particularly spatial), and de facto discrimination are the heart and soul of this crisis.” These problems remain unaddressed....

Understand the word complicit. Being involved with others in illegal activity or wrongdoing.

8 June 2020
By Joshua Virasami

To be neutral, (click here) to be passive in a situation,” the historian Howard Zinn tells us, “is to collaborate with whatever is going on.” If the history of black political struggle in the US – something Zinn, a white ex-soldier, actively participated in – teaches us one thing, it is that meaningful political change happens not just when black and brown people take a stand against racism, but when the wider society moves from being neutral to becoming actively anti-racist. 

The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) was one of the most formidable organisations in the fight for civil rights. It understood that change occurs when people are moved to action. Students in northern US universities, although sympathetic to the plight of black southerners, remained passive supporters, so the SNCC organised “freedom buses” for students to come and act as observers....

Complicit and racism are commodities that need to come forward in the Flint trials. There was absolutely no one in Lansing interested in the lives of the people of Flint. No one. There were cronies of Snyder that were far more important than the people of Flint. Snyder didn't shirk responsibility to the people of Flint, he actively circumvented their well-being. 

All along, (click here) Snyder ducked responsibility, later offering faux regret and ownership for the debacle that’s left thousands of residents sick, depressed, and hopeless. Meanwhile, he’s fought tooth and nail to cut water tax credits to Flint residents; fought a court order for the state to deliver water to people’s doorsteps, appropriate money to fix the tens of thousands of lead and galvanized pipes that need replacement (fortunately, he was forced to settle yesterday to pay for 18,000 new pipes) and, ultimately, to provide the proper medical care that Flint residents need — Medicare for life....

March 28, 2017

By Jordon Chariton

...According to Snyder, (click here) his Emergency Manager, and other state officials, this was all a cost-saving measure in the face of Detroit’s high water prices (Flint was Detroit’s largest customer). The powers-that-be said switching off of Detroit to the Flint River temporarily would save the city money until the privatized KWA Pipeline was ready.

Emails unearthed from April, 2013, show that’s nonsense. In the face of losing its biggest customer, Detroit Water offered Flint an immediate 48% discount, which over 30 years would be 20% cheaper than what Flint would pay to the KWA....

...If you don’t know, there’s active discussion on plans to frack, frack, and frack some more along the path of the KWA pipeline — which would require TONS OF water.

And in looking at some of Snyder’s top donors, a troubling pattern appears: They’re a bunch of MOTHER FRACKERS!

Between Snyder’s initial run for governor in 2010 and today, the head of MPI Research, William Parfet, donated $300,000 to Snyder’s campaigns. Until last year, he was on the Board of Directors for big-agro giant Monsanto (pesky sexual harassment lawsuit may have done him in).

Well, what do you know? Monsanto heavily deploys nitrogen fertilizer, which is primarily made up of natural gas. Hence, the more natural gas produced by fracking, the cheaper nitrogen fertilizer becomes for Monsanto (and the more it can use)....

You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours. Pure, unadulterated quid pro quo. Never one day did Rick Snyder rise to the much needed advocate for the people. Never once. It was all too easy to look the other way and demonize the lazy people of Flint, Michigan that never pay their bills. At no point in time did Snyder live up to this oath of office when it came to Flint.

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support the Constitution of the United States and the constitution of this state, and that I will faithfully discharge the duties of the office of .......... according to the best of my ability. No other oath, affirmation, or any religious test shall be required as a qualification for any office or public trust.

Does anyone actually believe the duties of the Governor's office are different for GM and Flint when it comes to a safe water supply? No. Actually, protecting life was suppose to take precedent over protecting engines for a car company. 

Never one day did Rick Snyder put the people first when it comes to a majority-black community in Flint. 

Never one day.

If this level of corruption is not part of the criminal proceedings then what is going to change the dynamics of racism yet alone respect for all life?

February 18, 2021

Lansing, Mich. — Attorneys for former Gov. Rick Snyder (click here) and eight others facing charges in the Flint water crisis are seeking to speed the production of evidence after a judge said he needs at least four months to inspect grand jury records. The lawyers said Thursday that the delay will hurt the defendants, who “are left to languish under the specter of reputation-destroying criminal charges with virtually no avenue to challenge or assess the allegations.” Genesee County Chief Circuit Judge Duncan Beagle has issued an order governing how he will review and release grand jury testimony and set a status hearing for June 14.

It is a joint plea. All the defendants are working together to end the charges. They are not all equally charged. How is it a judge is expected by all the defendants charged are demanding the very same Grand Jury records? There is a lot wrong here.

February 18, 2021

Flint, Mich. - According to a motion filed today, (click here) all nine defendants charged in connection with the Flint Water Crisis have filed a motion to ask for grand jury testimony and exhibits related to the case produce immediately....

Change in the subject. The case about the Whitmer kidnapping is taking a rather odd path. The federal request for records needs to go forward.

February 17, 2021

By Robert Snell

A Grand Rapids federal judge (click here) Tuesday refused to let prosecutors share secret grand jury testimony with state prosecutors who are trying to convict eight men on terrorism charges related to the alleged plot to kidnap and harm Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

U.S. District Judge Robert Jonker said federal prosecutors failed to justify the need to share the privileged testimony central to a case that has shed light on violent extremism in Michigan.

Is this for real? A judge is blocking evidence to convict terrorists. The new Attorney General nominee, Merrick Garland needs to be seated so these cases can move along with consistency. 

The testimony prosecutors wanted to share was not specified in court records. But the request last month coincided with the surprise cooperation of Hartland Township resident Ty Garbin, 25, who pleaded guilty to kidnapping conspiracy and agreed to help prosecutors — and testify in front of grand juries....

The Harper’s Article

Harper’s Magazine prints dialogue and information that most other media does not. I question the wisdom of placing such a controversial short article in print because of the precarious nature of Mr. and Mrs. Navalny. I don’t believe it is going well for them. 

There are several ways of looking at the article and the one point of view that may be legitimate is if the couple, who are loved by people in Russia, are to survive the Putin regime this might shake things up a bit.

I can’t believe Harpers did this on a whim. I am sure they put thought into it before it was published in hard copy and not just cyber which can be tampered with by foreign agents. Print, once published, is permanent.

The way I see it, is that The West was successful in removing him after he was poisoned and returned his health. It is vital Western Democracies stand with Alexei and his wife. This short article keeps them in front of us. We nursed him back to health so he could resume his love for change in Putin’s Russia.

It is a humorous article that dummy’s down Russian authority and their prehistoric methods of silencing political opposition. So, besides keeping the couple in front of us, it also allows us to laugh at the futile nature of Russian authority in their clumsy fear of their own government.

We, as a global community, didn’t save him from

death before only to have it served up through a Russian court. Tampering with Alexei and his wife has no place in this world. They have a voice and while different than that of Putin’s autocratic government it is still a real voice from real people that have a right to live and carry out debate. 

Alexei Navalny did nothing wrong. He took a political stance different than the usual tone in Russia. He killed no one. He never picked up guns against the Russian government. Putin likes to think he is the greatest strong man in the world, but, yet he cannot survive mere words in the Russian language different than his.

Alexei Navalny and his wife are alive and they need to be heard for a long time. 

“Harper’s Magazine,” March 2021

Pages 17 - 19

[Prank Call]

PUTIN ON YOUR PANTS 

From a December 2020 telephone conversation between Konstantin Borisovich Kudryautsev, an FSB agent, and Alexei Navalny, a Russian opposition leader when Kudryautsev attempted to assassinate on an airplane in August by applying a nerve agent to his underwear. On the call, Navalny impersonated a senior security official. The transcript was published by an open source investigations site “Bellingcat.”

Konstantin Borisovich Kudryautsev: “Hello?”

Alexei Navalny: Konstantin Borisovich!

Kudryautsev: Yes, yes!

Navalny: This is Ustinov Maxim Setgeevich. I apologize for the early hour, but I urgent require ten minutes of your time.

Kudryautsev: All right.

Navalny: I am doing a report which will be discussed by the Security Council at the highest levels. I need a single paragraph from every unit member. Why was the Navalny operation in Tomsk a complete failure?

Kudryautsev: I have been wondering that myself.

Navalny: I am interested in your opinion.

Kudryautsev: Well, in my profession - you know this yourself - there is a lot of nuances.

Navalny: What?

Kudryautsev: If he had been in the air for longer, and they did not land in such an abrupt way, possibly, things would have not gone the way it did. Meaning, if the medics did not aid him, if there was no ambulance at the airport, and so on.

Navalny: Perhaps the dosage was not correctly estimated?

Kudryautsev: Well, I can’t say that.

Navalny: Let us then turn to the specific technique. How was the substance administered? Do you think an appropriate method was selected?

Kudryautsev: This should be communicated through a secure channel.

Navalny: Do you understand who will read this report? On this level there is no place for operative channels. People are not concerned with details - I must explain briefly how things transpired, and want to do it correctly.

Kudryautsev: How what transpired?

Navalny: How the substance was administered.

Kudryautsev: Well, the fact is the location was perhaps - how can I say it - the place they put it, there might have been a possibility of detection, subsequently.

Navalny: Which garment posed the highest risk factor? 

Kudryautsev: A risk factor in what sense?

Navalny: Where the concentration was the highest.

Kudryautsev: Well, the underpants.

Navalny: Do you mean the inside or the outsider side? I have an entire questionnaire about this. I require your knowledge.

Kudryautsev: Well, we were processing the inner side.

Navalny: Imagine some underpants in front of you, which part did you process?

Kudryautsev: Where the crotch is.

Navalny: The crotch?

Kudryautsev: Well, the codpiece, as they call it.

Navalny: Wait, this is important. Who gave you the order to process the codpiece?

Kudryautsev: We figured this out on our own.

Navalny: I am writing it down, okay. The gray colored underwear do you remember?

Kudryautsev: Blue.

Navalny: And they were whole, I mean theoretically we could give them back? They were undamaged and everything is okay with them?

Kudryautsev: Yes, all is clear.

Navalny: Visually, nothing would be discovered? There were no spots, nothing?

Kudryautsev: No, no. Everything is fine, they are in good condition, clean.

Navalny: Do you want to add something you think may be of importance to my report?

Kudryautsev: Oh no, I think this was probably enough. Even too much.

Navalny: If I need more details, I may call you again in a couple of hours. So, please stay close to your phone, all right?

Kudryautsev: Yes, I am always available, day or night. I have this habit, I bring my phone everywhere - even to the toilet.

Navalny: I understand, I understand.

Kudryautsev: May I ask you: There is no problem, discussing this over an unsecured line?

Navalny: This is an extraordinary situation.

This reminds me of the phone call between David Koch and Scott Walker, who was actually Ian Murphy. The truth had its way.

The Shadow Docket

A rare occurrence in the past was when the Supreme Court would render a decision without a signature to the decision, nor a hearing before the Justices or an Appeals Court hearing. It seems to me these cases were plucked out of the lower courts as if the Supreme Court didn’t trust the appeal’s court with its decision. For as often as this occurred in recent years it has the appearance of political power rather than judicial review.

It seems there is bipartisan opinion in the US House that can bring about a unified response to curtail this Supreme Court’s power play. I hope the Shadow Docket receives full sunlight with the House Judiciary agreeing on the particulars of this bill.

It doesn’t sound like democracy to me. I am not sure what it sounds like, but, it has all the appearance of corruption.

ERCOT

The company that is failing Texas to supply electricity states supply and demand requires higher rates.

According to Reuters reporting on February 14, 2021 the cost of wholesale electricity spiked 10,000 percent. Pre-storm price was $30 per megawatt hour. It now sells the same commodity at $9000.

The PUC (Public Utility Commission) of Texas has a “UTILI-FACTS” page on “Charges on Your Electric Bill” that would give any accountant fainting spells. No wonder they have their own grid; it’s a racket and the federal system has no relationship.

PUC offers about five different types of rates. Sign onto a long term contract and a consumer won’t pay $9000/kilowatt hour. But, if a Texan felt lucky and opted for the wholesale price moment to moment they could see themselves on the hook for utility payments that will follow them to their grave. 

Why waste a good storm on cheap rates when ERCOT has to pay the lawsuits for the dead?

There needs to be a federal investigation into the state, ERCOT and their relationship to consumers. Before this storm there were some federal regulations that would apply like requesting ERCOT to maximize its output. Both Texas and the US Department of Energy asked ERCOT to maximize its output but with the infrastructure collapse there was no capacity to increase.

There is a lot wrong with this paradigm and it is not beneficial to Texans. Playing Russian Roulette with a Texan’s utility bill is a horrible policy, especially when the state government doesn’t even see this coming to warn consumers. Texas needs to formally recognize the climate crisis and prepare its infrastructure accordingly.

Livestock Pavilion

It is a little late in the game but better late than never. 

Livestock pavilions with a base for them to stand on will give them a slight advantage in strong winds. Standing on the pavilion will keep it from blowing away.

I was in northwest Michigan when the Arctic came during the winter of 2012-2013. It was cold and snowy beyond any winter before. My Jeep earned a place of honor that winter. It would crank up and roll through 3 feet of snow like it wasn’t even there.

It was bitter cold from end of December 2012 thru the second week of March. There was nothing but clouds for the entire time with an occasional blue patch to let you know there really was a sky up there. There was 220 inches of snow that fell and it was a constant chore to keep from being snowed in without access to the road.

I had a carport that was big enough to keep most of the snow from falling under the roof. I was volunteering at an art house that year and every show that was shown had a fresh batch of popcorn. It only makes sense that no one would buy hours old popcorn. So before the beginning of the next show the old popcorn was bagged to discard it. By the end of the evening there were several large bags of popcorn headed for the trash. So, instead I would put that popcorn in the Jeep to take it home.

Popcorn with butter was a perfect winter food for the wildlife. Lots of carbs in the popcorn and fat in the butter. All that equaled calories to burn for body heat. The problem was how to get the wildlife a reliable place to eat. Into the story comes the carport. I would leave the Jeep half out of the carport and use the front half to dump the popcorn. They found it and made it through a winter that would freeze a Wooly Mammoth.

Beef cows can grow a good coat given half a chance. But, it is the wind that will take their body heat. If they had a shelter near food and water they would probably figure out a way to huddle together to keep warm. Now, Texas ranchers know their livestock better than I, but, if they had some kind of wind break it would provide a better chance to them.

This entry is not to discourage anyone from vaccination.

I had my first dose of “Moderna” vaccine. I had no adverse reaction.

I did have a reaction to it about an hour after the injection. I felt fatigue in the way of needing rest. I think I dropped my blood pressure because immediately my heart started pounding in my chest. That pounding lasted 15 minutes. I had no chest pain. My heart never missed a beat. 

I think the body’s reaction to an mRNA vaccine is a brief sense of shock. The mRNA is a foreign body entering the body and ultimately the blood stream. Like, getting an infusion of the wrong blood type only far, far less severe. The human body can only react so many ways to day to day life and in this case a vaccine against a deadly virus. 

I never was worried that it was harming me. I recognized that my body was taking appropriate measures to identify and counter a strange substance that shouldn’t be there. No injection site inflammation or anything like that. Just a brief episode of what I believe was mild shock.

I am among the current population prioritized to receive the Moderna shot. I feel lucky today and know after six weeks from today and a second shot I will have achieved 95 percent immunity from SARS-CoV-2. 

If Ted Cruz is ever elected again...

 ...Texans should be ashamed of themselves. He went on a planned vacation when Texas has the worst catastrophe of it’s history.

President Biden is more worried about Texas than the state’s own Senator.

New Zealand built the three turbines that powers the USA station as well as the New Zealand station.

Ross Island, Antarctica

People paid for seating. There was a bidding war.

A spot on the Atlantic City Boardwalk (click here) where movie stars, athletes and rock stars used to party — and a future president honed his instincts for bravado and hype — was reduced to a smoking pile of rubble shortly after 9 a.m. Wednesday.

 

COVID-19

Global Confirmed Cases - 109,217,366 (click here)

Global Deaths - 2,413,912

Globally, about 2.2 percent of all confirmed cases die. The Americas are still leading the world in cases and deaths.

USA confirmed cases - 27,433,718

USA deaths - 482,989

The USA survival rate is lower than the global rate at 1.8 percent of all cases end in death. The USA still leads the world in cases at 25 percent of all cases.

The good news is globally the confirmed cases are trending DOWN.

Sorry, but, I really think it is the "Joe" factor. He is taking it seriously. The USA matters. Vaccines are a part of this, but, we are still at about 12 percent vaccinated in the USA. The trend started down in January.

...As of 6 a.m. EST Feb. 16, (click here) a total of 71,657,975 vaccine doses had been distributed in the U.S., and 55,220,364 had been administered, or 77.06 percent. Additionally, 39,670,551 people had received one or more doses of the vaccine, and 15,015,434 had received the full two doses. That means about 12 percent of the U.S. population had received at least one dose of the vaccine, and about 4.5 percent had been fully vaccinated....

The spikes are the concerning part. They were targeted by the vaccines. If the variants are losing their spikes, it is a problem.

February 17, 2021

Scientists have identified another new variant of coronavirus in the UK (click here) with some potentially troubling mutations.

B.1.525 appears similar to the South African variant which prompted door-to-door tests in areas where it has been found.

Researchers from Edinburgh University have found 38 cases so far - 2 in Wales and 36 in England - in samples dating back to December.

It has been seen in other countries, including Denmark, Nigeria and the US.

UK experts are studying it to understand what risk it poses.

It is too soon to say if it should be added to the UK's list of "variants of concern" and whether mass testing for it should happen. So, for now, it is a "variant under investigation"....

January 28, 2021

...After injection, (click here) the vaccine particles come into contact with immune system cells and deliver the mRNA message: you need to make this spike protein, and here’s how. As the vaccinated cells start churning out the spike protein, other immune system cells realize that the protein should not be there. That’s when the battle begins.

“The immune system starts building an immune response and making antibodies,” says Aisha Langford, PhD, MPH, assistant professor in NYU Langone’s Department of Population Health. “And that’s how we train the immune system to recognize the spike protein, and that’s what protects us from being infected.”

Your body continues to produce antibodies until all the spike proteins have been destroyed. At the end of this natural immune process, your immune system has the knowledge it needs to recognize the spike protein and fend off future exposure to the virus. So if the virus enters the body, the immune system will identify and attack it....

Stop blaming wind turbines for Texas' problems.

Left is the current temperature map for the USA.

Wind Turbines have no problem operating in Antarctica. The petroleum industry thinks they own the planet. Wrong! If it weren't so tragic it would be laughable.

YOU DON'T LISTEN!

This didn't have to happen!

February 16, 2021

Gas production (click here) in the US south central region is down by about 6.3 Bcf/d (178mn m³/d) because of wellhead freeze-offs and natural gas processing plant outages caused by extreme cold, according to the US Energy Department. These outages represent about 30pc of output in the region and about 7pc of total US production.

Gas suppliers are responding to high demand and lost output by withdrawing gas from storage. Storage withdrawals in the region are up by 10 Bcf/d compared with withdrawals made before the storm hit, the department said.

Natural gas supply outages are leaving "energy-rich Texas facing rolling blackouts," analysts with investment firm Tudor Pickering Holt said today....

Be prepared to fix the leaks when it thaws. There is also the danger of potentially larger leaks that cause explode, too. Cities and towns need to close their gas pipelines until the system is checked mile by mile to be sure there aren't going to be exploding streets and houses.

February 17, 2021

Natural gas wells (click here) and pipes ill-equipped for cold weather are a big reason why millions of Texans lost power during frigid temperatures this week. As temperatures dropped to record lows across some parts of the state, liquid inside wells, pipes, and valves froze solid.

Ice can block gas flow, clogging pipes. It’s a phenomenon called a “freeze-off” that disrupts gas production across the US every winter. But freeze-offs can have outsized effects in Texas, as we’ve seen this week. The state is a huge natural gas producer — and it doesn’t usually have to deal with such cold weather....

Texans facing hopelessness.

...need to go south to Mexico until the weather breaks. I cannot believe a Texas mayor is saying only the strong will survive. Why isn’t Abbott calling the National Guard to build heated shelters?

There is a highway that goes through Mexico to Belize. Don’t go to Guatemala.

I think the exchange rate for the US dollar in Belize is 1 to 2.

It is the Pan-American Highway System. BUT, don’t stay on it otherwise it will end in Panama. But, there is a highway that will leave the main highway to travel to Belize. In a climate emergency like this a USA drivers’ license will serve to prove ID. The Mexican authorities should understand the issue. Belize can be strict about border crossing but they will understand life and death. Belize doesn’t want drug traffic.

Censured?

The GOP is afraid of the truth.

The new Republican Party has a good start to find their members, look for the ones with a gag order.

So much for the First Amendment which Trump declared as a defense to his leadership of the insurrection.