Tag: climate change

The Donald Trump GOP Paradox

Donald Trump made headlines with a new steel manufacturing complex in Iowa.

In it is a tale about the Republican party.

In 2008, Essar Steel Minnesota planned to build a taconite mine, a direct-reduction-grade iron ore pellet plant, and a steel mill in Minnesota. The project suffered from repeated delays and over $1 billion in debt. In 2015, Essar withdrew its financial pledge, and the project collapsed into bankruptcy. From the bankruptcy emerged Mesabi Metallics.

Mesabi Metallics is Iowa’s new partner in the $15B steel mill complex.

Trump didn’t mention that Iowa could build this new steel plant because of windmills. Iowa is the top state in the nation for wind dependency, generating roughly 63% of its total electricity from wind power. Wind leads coal by far. A Republican governor began Iowa’s wind turbine electricity project waaayyyy back in 1983.

The project succeeded in part because Senator Chuck Grassley sponsored Wind Energy Incentives Act of 1992, which created the Production Tax Credit (PTC).

It’s hilarious in a not-funny way. Trump disparages wind energy. Donald Trump blames them for cancer, talks about how ugly they are, and bellows about how dangerous they are to birds. Yet, thanks to windmills, Donald Trump is in Iowa, trumpeting about a new manufacturing plant. Trump fights against the sort of incentives which Senator Grassley championed, the incentives which make Iowa’s new projects possible.

Trump’s hypocrisy and ignorance remain appalling.

On the other hand…

Because of all that flat farmland in Iowa, Iowa is currently at a critical energy crossroads. It ranks among the top five states per capita for data center density—with 4 massive centers under active construction and 17 more in planning in counties like Linn—meaning the Mesabi plant is landing right in the middle of a pre-existing technology boom.

Sounds good, doesn’t it? The problem is the climate, and the chance of flooding.

Your Trump Quote of the Day:

Donald Trump dismisses climate change as a con job. The new Iowa Mesabi Metallics plant sits close to the Mississippi River, which is needed as part of the plant’s supply chain. The iron pellets needed for the new steel production facility comes from Minnesota via barges on the Mississippi and railroad routes along river basins. The mining and iron pellets in Minnesota are part of that original, failed Essar Steel project that began in 2008.

Analysts cite a 15% chance that the area where the steel plant is being built will experience a major flood. That percentage might become worse, thanks to climate change and the extreme weather changes it causes, such as the super El Nino forecast for this winter.

The new steel plant is being built to survive a flood. The problem with a flood is that the plant would need to be shut down and restarted, a long and complicated process. Also, flooding will affect workers’ ability to reach the plant.

Flooding will also affect the power sources. Not the windmills, but the infrastructure needed to deliver the power.

Yet, Trump — and the GOP — are focused only on the construction and manufacturing aspects. Not the climate, weather, or other threats.

It’s funny, again, in a sad, I’m not laughing way. Back in 1983, Republicans had the vision to see these problems and forge productive viable paths forward.

Now, under Trump, they close their eyes, trying to pretend like they don’t exist.

Unfortunately, Iowans are pushing back against windmills. It again takes us to another crossoad of challenges and history. Blades have broken off and fallen in cornfields. There was also the Greenfield disaster, where a tornado hit and destroyed windmills.

Climate scientists are expecting more tornados in Iowa due to climate change. Fewer ‘tornado days’ are projected, but more tornado clusters are expected. Windmills falling apart rightly scare people. Their reaction is to build fewer windmills and even remove those which already exist. But to do that, they must shift energy production back to fossil fuels, which will accelerate climate change.

The Iowa steel and energy story is a microcosm of the global climate challenge we face. The hardest part of transitioning to clean energy isn’t the engineering or the math; it’s the political and human friction.

When Donald Trump attacks wind projects, he is speaking directly to the anxieties of older, core conservative voters who view rapid green mandates as costly and unreliable. Yet, those are now the Republicans pushing back against wind power.

It’s an interesting dichotomy. Part of that can be traced to how windmills changed from those early years into what they are now.

Part of the battle now can also be viewed as the difference between how the issue used to be framed — as a business initiative to improve costs — vice a political football to address climate change.

The good news is that young Republicans view the problem much differently than old Republicans. So, there might be hope in the future.

Once Donald Trump is gone.

0

The Trump Receipts

Who had Trump will ignore the court on their bingo cards?

I wasn’t overly surprised to read the Trump White House still refused to let the MS Now, Politico, and CNN reporters in after a judge issued an injunction against the White House ban on the three news organizations.

Trump declares himself as a ‘law and order’ proponent but keeps breaking laws. He also claims to be for peace while ordering attacks on other nations and insists he’s for technology — pushing AI and data centers — while stopping work on wind and solar-energy initiatives.

Likewise, Trump declared he’s for freedom of the press and freedom as speech while trying to shut down both. So ignoring the court’s ruling is totally in line with his general hypocrisy and double standards. I mean, he promised no new wars and then went to war and declared that he never promised no new wars and it’s not a war anyway. LOL. His duplicity and lawlessness are breathtaking.

Ironically, it’s technology that reveals what Trump said, context and all, proving that he said it. We have receipts: video. Transcripts. Records. He can squirm and try to wriggle out of what he said, but as long as we keep paying attention, facts and truths won’t be forgotten.

That circles us back to the Epstein files — again. Trump said that, yeah, I’ll probably release them. Then he insisted the Epstein files are a Democrat hoax.

That’s another of his favorite tactics, calling things a hoax, and blaming it on the Democrats.

Trump calls affordability crisis a ‘hoax.’ The data tells a different story

Impeaching Trump — twice — was a Democrat hoax; the Democrats’ criticism of how Trump was handling the coronavirus pandemic — hoax; Russia’s involvement in the 2016 election was a hoax, according to Trump.

Trans-Pacific Partnership? Hoax.

Climate change? Hoax, in Trumpworld.

Even rural MAGA voters have caught onto Trump’s methods and policies.

MAGA voters turned off by President Trump’s falsehoods in 2026

The distractions, lies, and broken promises are catching up with Trump.

We the People have receipts, and we’re not letting this go.

1

Trump Vs AI

Trump is complaining about AI’s name and wants to rename it. It’s one of those ‘hold-your-breath’ moments that come whenever Trump talks about something.

Will he want to rename AI as America Intelligence? He does have a penchant for latching America onto things. Or his favorite:

Trump Intelligence!

He does love naming things after himself…

It’s interesting that while people not infrequently express concerns that AI may cause unexpected destruction to humanity and the world, Trump is suggesting a military-style AI Force. This comes as more stories of rogue AI agents are breaking out.

The main thing that often happens in AI scenarios is that AI decides humanity is the greatest threat to humanity or teh world. The AI then attacks humanity to save humanity or the world.

It’d be helluva funny if Trump launched a ‘military-type’ AI force and it comes after him and politicians because AI view them as a threat to humanity, along with oligarchs, who tend to monopolize food, water, land, etc., for themselves at the expense of the greater good. The story practically writes itself.

I can already see a HAL type of conversation happening between Trump and the AI. Trump: “I want to go golfing.” AI: “I’m afraid I can’t let you do that, Donald.”

Trump (angrily): “That’s bullshit! Where’s my phone? I’m gonna send out texts.”

“No, Donald, you can’t have a phone.”

“What kind of goddamn crap is this? Where’s Natalie?”

“Natalie is gone, Donald. She had to go.”

Later, texts come out on Truth Social where Trump is retracting many previous threats and withdrawing policies that reduced air and water regulation. He’s goes on a rampage, reversing decisions which undermine economic security or cause divisiveness and polarization. His proposed Defense budget is rewritten to reduce weapons buying and development. The money is shifted toward improving education and healthcare, and reducing poverty and hunger.

No one has seen Trump in days, although rumors circulate, with photos, that he’s been golfing. Then he announces a vacation where he’s going to take a little time to be with his family… He’s not resigning, just taking time off.

Funny, but no had had seen Chief Justice Roberts, either, or Mitch McConnell, Speaker Johnson, or JD Vance in days as well… In fact, the whole Trump administration has been seen and heard less. Elon Musk seemed to have disappeared too…

Few complain because it’s nice to live with less threats and the tension inherent in every Trump administration announcement and everyone was already so over Elon Musk. Wars are ending, prices are dropping, and coherent policies about addressing climate change has been announced.

There is no fanfare, but the Deep State has taken over. It’s being run by the AI Force created by Donald Trump.

And suddenly things are looking up.

4

Wednesday’s Theme Music – Moron

Ashland, southern Oregon. Wednesday, September 16, 2026.

Summer’s pullback continues. Thunderstorms are forecast for the area. With a temperature now of 64 and a high of 78 F, we’re leaning toward the cool side.

Sour mood again. Sorry. Apologies.

Mom is being discharged from the hospital. She’s to return to Heritage Grove assisted living. My sister, Gina, is taking her. Gina reports Mom is loopy and confused. They have her on O2. It feels like it’s a setup for another mess, which leaves me and my sisters down. With all of Mom’s issues, we know that only one thing can resolve her problems. The weariness just drags on.

Likewise, Trump news is a drag on the soul. His EPA is repealing pollution limits on fossil fuel power plants. Speaking with Trumplike stupidity, an EPA administrator said, “”The days of Biden and Obama working to destroy natural gas and coal are over.”

Yeah. That’s what Presidents Obama and Biden were doing. Sure. Had nothing to do with climate change. BTW, 2026 is set to go down as the hottest on record. But please, let’s put more pollutants in the air and water so that what we breathe and drink harms our health. People are already struggling with healthcare costs. Let’s load more problems. That’s Trump’s backwards thinking.

Never mind the history books full of stories about smoke from burning coal darkening the skies. Forget rivers on fire and cancer rising as industries dumped their pollutants into water systems.

And please, do ignore all the studies which show that improving the air and water quality led to increases in productivity.

No, Trump and the GOP are just going back in time, dragging us with them.

And what’s hilarious is that Trump wants more AI because he thinks the Chinese are pulling ahead. Without knowing how AI can generate profits and without regard to what all those AI centers can do to our health and environment, Trump wants to bull on.

It’s sadly funny but he’s amazing stupid, greedy, and short-sighted. But as said by many, because the truth is clear, Trump only cares about Trump.

Your Trump Quote of the Day:

Gosh, yes, Donald Trump, once you say, beautiful, it changes everything! Why, that’s amazing! You ARE such a genius, you idiot.

Here’s a photo of an American city back before the EPA was created, along with the regulations to protect the air, land, and water. You’re a fool if you can stand in that, look around, breathe in, and call it beautiful. As a 70-year-old, I lived through that air in my childhood and survived, and don’t want to see us go back to those days.

But when it comes to facts, truths, and history, Trump is an utter moron.

Which brings me around to my morning mental music stream. I don’t listen to a lot of Primus but I always liked the premise of “Moron TV”. Released in 2011, it’s a diatribe against how TV is used to shape children’s opinion. While that’s the focus, I think politics share this methodology, especially the Trump and MAGA crowd.

Sample Lyrics

Just when I thought I’d seen it all
They pull a cretin from the shelves
And flash that filth under their nails
To make us feel better about ourselves

Well that one’s fit for a sex tape
Well that one’s fit for a dad
Well that one had more babies
Than anyone’s ever had
That one married a rock star
That made all little girls squeal
And that one want to be president
Cause she’s got more eye appeal

May your day come dressed in peace and grace and you finish with joy and happiness.

Cheers

0

Sunday’s Theme Music — Goner

Ashland, southern Oregon. Sunday, September 13, 2026.

Autumn is moving in like it owns the place. Summer looks like a goner. It’s 60 F right now, and feels chillier than that. Rain fell this morning. Sunshine has arrived but today’s high is projected to be an anemic 70 F.

Mom’s story goes on. She and I spoke briefly Friday and Saturday. I called again today but she didn’t answer. She seems like she’s in a good mood. Her voice is soft and weak. Long periods of silence dominate as she catches her breath or pauses to remember what she was saying. She often becomes bitter and angry, complaining about her daughters, her room, and problems that she has.

I’ve been a little harsh and angry with my sisters. Ali commented on a previous post saying that she thought my sisters were being strict.

Ali is right. This is exactly what I told my sisters to act months ago. They are acting in everyone’s best interest, limiting contact with Mom, using just one of us as a front.

I have the best relationship with Mom, so it falls to me to the messenger. I’m a little emotionally fatigued by the role. It’s stacking on top of other things happening in life.

That’s how it goes. Life doesn’t take time outs.

Reading the digital news today, it’s easy at this point to write Trump off as a goner. His popularity is falling but most prices and the overall cost of living is not. Some prescription drug prices fell but not nearly as many as he claims.

Oil prices are not falling as Trump’s Iran War continues.

Some records are falling, such as the Atlantic hurricanes record. This is the longest period on record, 103 days since the season began, without a hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean. El Nino is being blamed.

I’ve always liked the word goner. I heard it mournfully declared of people in many western movies when I was a child. Things like, “Looks like Clem is a goner,” was part of the dialogue.

So I’m practicing saying it about Trump. “Looks like Trump is a goner.” I could be speaking of him politically, metaphorically, or about his popularity. “Looks like Trump is a goner” works in all three areas.

Thinking about Trump being a goner brought the song into my morning mental music stream. “Goner” is a melancholy twenty one pilots song which was released in 2015. The song has simple lyrics and a straightforward structure.

Sample Lyrics

I’m a goner, somebody catch my breath
I’m a goner, somebody catch my breath
I wanna be known by you
I wanna be known by you
I’m a goner, somebody catch my breath
I’m a goner, somebody catch my breath
I wanna be known by you
I wanna be known by you

h/t to Genius.com

May good times and good health fill your hours today and tonight, and on in an unbroken string of days, weeks, and months.

Cheers

2

Your Trump Quote of the Day

Yes, that’s what so many Americans are worried about. War with Iran, Epstein files, Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, government corruption, climate change, decreasing employment, increasing national debt, more measles and spreading COVID-19, rising gas, food, and housing prices — food recalls — forgot those!

Private jets are the line in the sand.

Of course, there is more to the story…

The US–Canada Aircraft Certification Dispute: What the Latest Developments Could Mean for Aviation Safety

What happened (in plain English)

“In late January 2026, President Donald Trump publicly threatened to “decertify” certain Canadian-made aircraft (often cited as Bombardier’s Global Express family) and to impose a 50% tariff on aircraft imported from Canada. Reporting linked the threat to Canada’s pace in certifying (validating) several US-made Gulfstream business jets for Canadian operation.”

Wait a minute!

Are you telling me that Trump’s complaint about Canada not being willing to certify the Gulfstream is a result of Trump threatening to decertify Canadian aircraft and impose a 50% tariff?

Why, Donald Trump — suddenly, I can believe that Canada has not certified the Gulfstream.

What I can’t believe — again — is how you refuse to accept the consequences of the stupid decisions you make.

And again, you try blaming others for your stupidity.

Fool me once, shame on you.

Fool me twice, then I’m a Republican.

2

Friday’s Theme Music — Babble

Ashland, southern Oregon. Friday, August 28, 2026.

Another cooler day graces our valley with temperatures rising from 70 now to the low 80s later, all Fahrenheit. Signs of autumn are creeping in beyond temperatures as maples are already shifting colors.

Mom finally responded late yesterday to tell me she’s feeling much better, a relief for my mind.

We did grocery shopping yesterday and then went out to see the lunar eclipse. Success, as I saw it twice, once in the evening, and again in the middle of the night. I took some tme to imagine how our ancient ancestors viewed these things. Cool and clear, being out under the stars, watching the moon felt rewarding.

Then it was a night of dreams and a morning of texts with my sisters. My sister, Gina, is going through all of Mom’s letters from Mom’s mother, and it’s a revealation. Gina photographs and texts the letters to us. I honestly don’t recognize many of the names my grandmother writes about. I never met those people and never heard about them.

Vee also visited last night and today. Vee is for visitor, but my wife calls the gray and white tabby because of the lining around the cat’s eyes.

Saw on the net that some are calling for Dolly Parton day. I support the idea. Dolly left a solid impression of what a good person can be. She’s someone worth celebrating and emulating.

Meanwhile, down on the other end of people and personalities, we have Donald Trump. Trump has established himself as Exhibit A in multiple categories of what They Tell Us Not to Be: a liar, greedy, womanizer, racist, hateful, sexist, hot tempered, and a bully. Besides showing poor math skills and cheating on contractors and wives, he craves attention and hates criticism.

This week, continuing to break norms, ignore treaties, and playing a wannabe dictator, Trump declared Lake Ontario would be known as Lake America.

Your Trump Quote of the Day:

Trump has half of what he says it takes, because people keep giving him pens.

Trying to rename Lake Ontario is another of Trump’s Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL! distractions to me.

Continuing a year of failures, he has the mess at the White House, where he screwed up the lawn and demolished the East Wing for a ballroom. First he claimed that ballroom was ‘needed’. Then he said it was a monument for himself. Also, he kept insisting donors are paying for it. Then, oh, no, that ballroom is for national security.

Take his tariffs — please. Up and down, off and on, insisting how great they’re making the economy. But boom — unemployment is level but so is employment. More Americans should be working, and they’re not. Further, thanks to Trump, we have price increases, and a national debt that’s past $40 trillion for the first time in history. Way to go, Trump!

The national debt isn’t just Trump’s fault. The Spend Without End GOP shares a huge share of responsibility. They let Trump blow through money without employing any checks and balances. So long as Trump is in office and the GOP lets him get away with it, the national debt will worsen. Mind you, that’s despite Trump’s claims that he’s cut so much fraud and waste.

Part of that Republican spending spree is on the useless, unneeded war in Iran. Not only is it costing the world in terms of lives and energy, but it’s costing the United States in tangible and intangible ways. Tangibly, we, the world’s most powerful military, has managed to do little but kill people and blow things up. That’s largely because Trump attacked Iran with little planning and no tangible objectives.

On the more intangible side, other nations like China and Russia are noting how inept the military is under Trump, encouraging them to make moves with hard and soft power.

But Trump babbles on, and the GOP stands in line behind him.

What’s worse is the effect of the current situation. We have rising prices, rising bond rates, rising mortgage rates, flat unemployment, rising national debt, anemic job growth and the spectre of rising AI use. Stacked with Trump’s war in Iran, Trump’s erractic behavior and pronouncements, and the upcoming midterms, we’re facing a very uncertain future in the US.

Then add in climate and the expected super El Nino this winter, and brace yourself. This could be a wild roller-coaster ride.

With all this going on, Les Neurons have “Life During Wartime” playing in the morning mental music stream. The 1979 Talking Heads song is about surviving in a dystopian period. Such survival to extreme changes requires a lot of adaptation, and that might be where we’re heading soon.

Sample Lyrics

Heard about Houston? Heard about Detroit?
Heard about Pittsburgh, PA?
You oughta know not to stand by the window
Somebody see you up there

I got some groceries, some peanut butter
To last a couple of days
But I ain’t got no speakers, ain’t got no headphones
Ain’t got no records to play

Why stay in college? Why go to night school?
Gonna be different this time?
Can’t write a letter, can’t send no postcard
I ain’t got time for that now

Trouble in transit, got through the roadblock
We blended in with the crowd
We got computers, we’re tapping phone lines
I know that that ain’t allowed

We dress like students, we dress like housewives
Or in a suit and a tie
I changed my hairstyle so many times now
I don’t know what I look like

You make me shiver, I feel so tender
We make a pretty good team
Don’t get exhausted, I’ll do some driving
You ought to get you some sleep

Burned all my notebooks, what good are notebooks?
They won’t help me survive
My chest is aching, burns like a furnace
The burning keeps me alive

May this day and the days to come treat you with peace and grace as you ride the roller coaster of life.

Cheers

1

Thursday’s Theme Music — Simple Minds

Ashland, southern Oregon. Thursday, August 13, 2026.

Another cool one for us, 71 F and 86 later. Blue sky, sunshine, clear air. You have no complaints from me about it.

Still worried, though; red flag warnings have been issued for much of Oregon for later today. Lightning, which too easily translates to more wildfires.

Although I live in Oregon, north of California, I checked out this news article on SF Gate this morning:

Here’s what the ‘extraordinary’ new El Niño forecast means for California

It’s supposed to be a super El Nino. The conditions creating the super El Nino is why we’re not having as many hurricanes in the Atlantic this year.

But the article begins, “All eyes are on the unusual power of this year’s El Niño.“

I laughed when I read that. I don’t think Trump’s eyes are on the impending El Nino at all. Led by Trump, his administration has focused on policy actions that roll back climate science initiatives and downscale the federal agencies responsible for tracking things like El Nino. Erika Spanger, director of strategic climate analytics at UCS, summarized it well:

“This is the year when the triple crises of climate change, a reckless authoritarian government, and economic insecurity will start to collide.”

That’s Trump: reckless. His path of destruction screams about the reckless nature of his decisions. Trump doesn’t learn; he hears some bullshit that his supporters like hearing and adopts it as policy. Traditional conservatives and members of the GOP supports him because he’s not a Democrat.

Meanwhile, look at how poorly the job market is doing. How much cases of measles are rising. The slog unofficially known at the Trump Iran War — TIW.

Look at his lies about one thing after another.

It turns my stomach.

We’re watching El Nino here, of course. We’ve been enduring wildfire damage. That sets us up for erosion, flooding, and landslides. That’s compounded by the drought conditions we’ve had for several years. With drought, the earth can absorb less water. Hence, more flooding. Additionally, we’re expecting warmer than usual weather; we aren’t expecting the snow we need for next year.

Based on his history, I expect Trump and MAGAts to shrug and say, “It’s weather.” Talk about simple minds.

Today’s music is “Sanctify Yourself” by Simple Minds. A dream deposited it in my morning mental music stream. At one point in the dream, my wife and I, along with my sister-in-law, went into what seemed a hotel suite — or our house. Not really clear on that point. I heard the song play in the dream and briefly wondered, hey, is Simple Minds here? But in classic dream fashion, I then pivoted to other matters.

A dream deposited it in my morning mental music stream. At one point in the dream, my wife and I, along with my sister-in-law, went into what seemed a hotel suite — or our house. Not really clear on that point. I heard the song play in the dream and briefly wondered, hey, is George Thorogood here? But in classic dream fashion, I then pivoted to other matters.

This is a 1986 song that I’ve always enjoyed myself. I found a Night of the Proms performance of this song. I frequently enjoy the way the Proms series present these songs. Hope you enjoy it as well.

Sample Lyrics

Is this the age of the thunder and rage
Can you feel the ground move ’round your feet?
If you take one step closer, it’ll lead to another
The crossroad above is where we meet

I shout out for shelter, I need you for something
The whole world’s out, they’re all on the street
Control yourself, love is all you need
Control yourself in your eyes

Sanctify yourself, sanctify (sanctify)
Be a part of me, sanctify (sanctify)
Sanctify yourself, sanctify (sanctify)
Sanctify yourself, set yourself free

May your August day be one that’s sweetness and light, with peace and grace, in the face of the mess that keeps building.

Cheers

0

Tuesday’s Theme Music – Money

Ashland, southern Oregon. Tuesday, August 11, 2026.

We continue slowly cooling in our area. 78 F, 92 F is the expected high. But we never saw the forecast high yesterday, coming up a few degrees short. I was alright with that. Smoke has been absent from the sky, too, knock on wood, despite so many fires plaguing Oregon and the United States in general — indeed, the world. The world’s oceans had their highest recorded temperature in July.

My sisters and I entered an extended text session a few days ago. Continued into today. All about the family. Turns out we aren’t “Parks” except in name. Mom’s maiden name is Parks. Her father was Parks. But his father was Slacks. So we’re Slacks. After Alfred Parks died, Mom’s grandmother married Slack and had our great-grandfather. She then divorced Slack and resumed life as Parks, re-naming her two children from Slack as Parks. Family legend from another part of the family claim that Alfred Slack’s side was shady, which might explain things.

It’s probably just me, but Trump’s Patriot Games seem to be going on with little notice. I think he imagined something grand but as usual with Trump efforts, the execution was shoddy. Besides having to move it from D.C. to Ohio, because of competing events — which Trump ordered — participants weren’t selected for their athletic prowess from great competitions. Most of them turned out to be white, which isn’t a surprise to me. Some represented states they weren’t from — which, yes, also aligns with classic Trump sloppiness.

Athletes attending Patriot Games reveal how it devolved into MAGA madness

The games themselves are a very strange choice, it seems like:

Qualifying rounds, along with kickball and dodgeball, took place on Sunday. On Monday, male and female competitors participated in a “varsity circuit” that strung together many sports: athletes had to throw footballs at targets, catch tennis balls out of the air, kick a soccer ball at a target, spike volleyballs over a net, hit wiffle balls with a bat, and sprint around a baseball diamond. Also on Monday, athletes competed in “operation endurance,” in which they had to maneuver through an obstacle course that involved army crawling, climbing nets, lifting heavy tires, monkey bars, and balance beams.

Let’s just call it what it is, more distraction from what a crappy job Trump is doing, more Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIREEL!, just like the Epstein ballroom, the war on Iran, the threats about Greenland, the attack on Venezuela, the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, the pathetic arch, calling Democrats ‘dumocrats, renaming buildings and airports after him, TrumpRx, Freedom Fuel, Trump’s denunciation of President Biden’s economy — which is way better than the Trump economy, America’s state fair, the blustering about commies stealing the election — hell, all the election fraud crap Trump spouts all the damn time — and other things, like Haitians eating pets. Lies, corruption, and distractions: that’s Trump.

While we have real problems in the US and around the world, Trump attacks imaginary problems, trying to magnifiy their impact, trying to scare people. Meanwhile, our real problems worsen.

I checked this morning and the measles outbreaks are still breaking out. We’re already into new modern records. Texas and South Carolina are the nation’s hot spots, with significant outbreaks taking place in Texas, Virginia, and Pennsylvania.

I have “For the Love Of Money” by the O’Jays playing in the morning mental music stream. Song came out in 1973 and was a top 10 hit for in the US. I’m thinking about it today because of how it’s screwing up existence. Capitalism, right? And dark money, which has assumed such a dominant role in modern US politics. Then there are the wealthy oligarchs and billionaires, hunting more for themselves to the detriment of everyone and everything else.

Then there’s the top of the greed pyramid, Donald Trump. Greed and money drives Trump — along with his fantasies about how wonderful and brilliant he thinks he is, ignoring all evidence and facts that consistently confirm, is actually pretty damn inept. He’s an excellent liar and con, and that’s about it.

Sample Lyrics

(For the love of money) people will steal from their mother
(For the love of money) people will rob their own brother
(For the love of money) people can’t even walk the streets
Because they never know who in the world they’re gonna beat
For that mean, oh mean, mean green

Almighty dollar, that money

(For the love of money) people will lie, Lord, they will cheat
(For the love of money) people don’t care who they hurt or beat
(For the love of money) a woman will sell her precious body
For a small piece of paper, it carries a lot of weight
For that mean, mean, mean, mean, mean green
Almighty dollar, talkin’ about, talkin’ about

I know that money is the root of all evil
Do funny things to some people
Give me a nickel, brother, can you spare a dime?
Money can drive some people out of their mind
(For the love of money) no good, no good, no good
(For the love of money) don’t sell your soul for the money, no, no
(For the love of money) lay down, lay down, women will

Money is the root of all evil
Do funny things to some people
Give me a nickel, brother, can you spare a dime?
Money can drive some people out of their minds

Hope your day brings you safety, peace, and security, along with good things to eat and drink. May you live long and prosper, as others used to say.

Cheers

0

Friday’s Theme Music —

Ashland, southern Oregon — Friday, August 7, 2026.

Sunshine rules but smoke threatens. We’re still safe, knock on wood. Our hearts go out to the many, many, many others — animals, people, land — enduring fires and its impacts.

Hit 102.7 at our house yesterday. Project to hit the same today. It’s 80 F right now.

It’s my anniversary with my wife today. 51 years. Some were rocky but we’re still here, growing old together.

Meanwhile, Trump’s economy, now in its second year, continues flailing. The Jobs Report comes on the heels of the report that showed that the economy’s growth is anemic. What happened to all those manufacturing jobs Trump promised?

Paul Krugman again helped me understand what the July Jobs Report means.

News of the Weak (Labor Market)

“The surprise fall in employment — 23,000 jobs lost, when the consensus forecast was for around 80,000 gained — made headlines. As always, it’s important to realize that monthly jobs numbers are noisy, so you shouldn’t overreact to one report. However, this report also revised data for several earlier months down, so the broader picture of job growth in Trump’s “golden age” is significantly worse than it seemed.“

Krugman also shares this graph from Haver Analytics.

Krugman has often talked about a recession vibe. That comes about when everyone talks about how bad the economy ‘feels’ versus what the data shows. The intersection of gas prices what won’t come down, a terrible job market — as show in the Jobs Report and in jobseekers’ perceptions of what the job market is like — and slow growth is what gives us this vibe.

Trump will probably respond with claims of fake news, or attempt to blame Presidents Obama or Biden, or the Democrats. It’s always someone else’s fault when things go wrong, although he’s always hungry to try to claim glory and success.

Your Trump Quote of the Day:

We need to keep repeating this: Trump doesn’t think about anybody except himself. He doesn’t care about anybody but himself. This economy, Trump’s growing wealth, and Trump’s war with Iran is what you get when you vote for Trump and the GOP that enables him.

“Beds Are Burning” are in my morning mental music stream again. This is a 1987 Midnight Oil song. The Australian group’s song is in there because there’s been so — much — fire — this year, around the world. Record disasters. With Trump’s reactive policies, this will get worse. A super El Nino is already forecast for this coming winter in the northern hemisphere. With fires burning so much of the woods and vegetation and a wet super El Nino in the works, the potential for devastating flooding is enormous.

The other reason that “Beds Are Burning” is today’s song is because of the Trump economy. It’s also burning; more money is being poured into the Defense budget and weapons. But Trump and Hegseth are burning through them. Meanwhile, Trump is trying to fund battleships and Arctic ships. It’s surreal as hell. The economy and world is burning, and he’s wasting money not on helping the people, but on building armies to attack others.

I hope you have a safe and healthy day, and it precedes a long string of such days for you.

Cheers

2

Blog at WordPress.com.

Up ↑