Obama’s chief scientist of the energy department says climate change is no existential threat

Steven Koonin, who was chief sci­en­tist of the Obama En­ergy De­part­ment ar­gues that what the me­dia and politi­cians and ac­tivists say about cli­mate sci­ence has drifted so far out of touch with the ac­tual sci­ence as to be ab­surdly, demon­stra­bly false.

From deeply ex­am­in­ing the world’s en­ergy sys­tem, he also be­came con­vinced that the real cli­mate cri­sis was a cri­sis of po­lit­i­cal and sci­en­tific can­dor: “the world isn’t go­ing to be able to re­duce emis­sions enough to make much dif­fer­ence.”

He points out the weakness and uncertainty in the models, doubting the use­ful­ness of cen­tu­ry­long fore­casts claim­ing to know how 1% shifts in vari­ables will af­fect a global cli­mate that we don’t un­der­stand with any­thing re­sem­bling 1% pre­ci­sion.

He agrees that the world has warmed by 1 de­gree Cel­sius since 1900 and will warm by an­other de­gree this cen­tury, plac­ing him near the mid­dle of the con­sen­sus, but he doesn’t see any­thing that would jus­tify the rapid and whole­sale aban­don­ing of fos­sil fu­els, even if China, In­dia, Brazil, In­done­sia and oth­ers could be dis­suaded from pur­su­ing pros­per­ity.

He’s a fan of ad­vanced nu­clear power even­tu­ally to pro­vide car­bon free base-load power.

But the Green New Deal makes no eco­nomic sense to force.  Every­thing he sees in the sci­ence sug­gests a slow, mod­est ef­fect, not a run­away warm­ing.  Let tech­nology and mar­kets work at their own pace. The cli­mate might con­tinue to change, at a pace that’s hard to per­ceive, but so­ci­eties will adapt. “As a species, we’re very good at adapt­ing.”

https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-a-physicist-became-a-climate-truth-teller-11618597216?st=snbnvw52k8f8s9r&reflink=article_copyURL_share

But climate financial regulation will not help the climate, will further politicize central banks, and will destroy their precious independence, while forcing financial companies to devise absurdly fictitious climate-risk assessments will ruin financial regulation. https://johnhcochrane.blogspot.com/2021/07/climate-risk-to-financial-system.html

https://johnhcochrane.blogspot.com/2021/07/rossi-hansberg-on-effects-of-carbon-tax.html

CRT - What's wrong with "whiteness?"

 

DEFINITION

Critical race theory is an academic discipline that holds that the United States is a nation founded on white supremacy and oppression, and that these forces are still at the root of our society. Critical race theorists believe that American institutions, such as the Constitution and legal system, preach freedom and equality, but are mere “camouflages” for naked racial domination. They believe that racism is a constant, universal condition: it simply becomes more subtle, sophisticated, and insidious over the course of history. In simple terms, critical race theory reformulates the old Marxist dichotomy of oppressor and oppressed, replacing the class categories of bourgeoisie and proletariat with the identity categories of White and Black. But the basic conclusion is the same: in order to liberate man, society must be fundamentally transformed through moral, economic, and political revolution.

State leg­is­la­tion about crit­i­cal race the­ory bans a spe­cific set of ped­a­go­gies—not teach­ing about his­tory. Left-lean­ing me­dia out­lets have claimed that bills in states such as Idaho, Ok­la­homa, Ten­nessee and Texas would ban teach­ers from dis­cussing racism in the class­room. This is patently false. The leg­is­la­tion in these states would sim­ply pro­hibit teach­ers from com­pelling stu­dents to be­lieve that one race “is in­her­ently su­pe­rior to an­other,” that one race is “in­her­ently racist, sex­ist, or op­pres­sive,” or that an in­di­vid­ual “bears re­spon­si­bil­ity for ac­tions com­mit­ted in the past by other mem­bers of the same race.” The same bills ex­plic­itly say that teach­ers may and should dis­cuss the role of racism in Amer­i­can his­tory, but they may not shame or treat stu­dents dif­fer­ently ac­cord­ing to their racial back­ground.

Thanks to CRT - a false narrative that disparities are due to systemic racism, not culture  

What would you call an ideology that rejects color-blindness, openly criticizes the civil rights movement, attacks successful blacks, and is blatantly and unapologetically racist?

This is the TRUTH about #CriticalRaceTheory: Watch Video

Critical race theory (CRT) is an academic discipline founded by law professors who used Marxist analysis to conclude that racial dominance by whites created “systemic racism.” Critical race theorists have been dominant in colleges and universities for years, but their impact on public policy was limited until recently. The precepts of CRT have now burst outside the universities, affecting K-12 schools, workplaces, state and federal governments, and even the military. This has sparked resistance from Americans who refuse to have their children indoctrinated or to submit to race-based workplace harassment.

As a new tactic against this grassroots opposition, CRT’s defenders now deny that the curricula and training programs in question form part of CRT, insisting that the “diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)” programs of trainers such as Ibram X. Kendi and Robin DiAngelo are distinct from the academic work of professors such as Derrick Bell, Kimberle Crenshaw, and other CRT architects. While there are many different CRT variations, there are bedrock features that are common to all its theorists and practitioners.

HOW TO IDENTIFY CRT

1. Systemic Racism: Critical race theory’s key assertion is that racism is not the result of individual, conscious racist actions or thoughts. Racism is “systemic” and “structural.” It is embedded in America’s legal system, institutions, and free enterprise system, and imposes “whiteness” as the societal norm. The system, including capitalism, is “rigged” to reward white behavior and preserve white supremacy. Curricula and training sessions that teach that racism is systemic and structural, and demand that Americans work to dismantle laws, traditions, norms, institutions, and free-market enterprise— the entire American system itself—are part of CRT.

CRT AT WORK: “It’s important to try to help youth understand how bias and oppression are institutional, structural and systemic, and not simply interpersonal,” asserts Dorinda Carter Andrews, chairperson of the Department of Teacher Education at Michigan State University.

2. Race Drives Beliefs and Behaviors: Critical race theorists assert that American culture is a conspiracy to perpetuate white supremacy by imposing white concepts on people of other races. Thus, members of minority groups must retain their cultural habits and never adopt standard practices or norms, no matter how neutral. Curricula or DEI programs that separate individuals by race, or teach that concepts such as being on time, hard work, literacy, etc., are products of white values, and therefore must be rejected by minorities, are part of CRT.

CRT AT WORK: “[M]any Latinos naturally view information about time more generally and simply cannot see the judicial system’s need for specificity and exactitude,” says Maria Ontiveros in “Critical Race Feminism.” (p. 223).

3. White Privilege: Because of the above, critical race theory says that white people are born with unearned privilege that other Americans are denied. This produces a “whiteness premium” that prevents working-class whites from working with working-class blacks to change the economic system. Reflecting its Marxist origins, CRT asserts that to achieve the unification of the working class, whites must recognize their white privilege and renounce it. Any curricula or DEI program that compels students or employees to accept their white privilege and/or work to abandon it, are part of CRT.

CRT AT WORK: As Derrick Bell writes in “Race, Racism and American Law,” segregation “represented an economic-political compromise between the elite and working-class whites [that] gave to the poor the sense of superiority, while retaining the substance for the rich.”

4. The System Won’t Allow Non-Whites to Succeed: Critical race theory teaches that whites have rigged the system, so the criteria used to measure merit and success in school or the workplace are not objective, but are designed to keep white individuals on top. Hiring metrics and workplace benchmarks, such as punctuality and logical thinking, need to be eliminated if non-whites are to succeed. Any curriculum or training program that says color blindness is a myth and advocates for eliminating standard measurements of success, including standardized testing for university admissions for reasons of racial equity, are part of CRT.

CRT AT WORK: “In short, merit serves as the phony pennant of color-blindness, used as justification for opposition to affirmative action,” claims Derrick Bell in “Popular Democracy.”

5. Equity Replaces Equality: “Equity” sounds like “equality”, but under critical race theory, it has become its functional opposite. “Equality” means equal treatment of all Americans under the law. CRT’s “equity” demands race-based discrimination. Because systemic racism has produced disparities between the races and because the system will only deepen these disparities by rewarding the “wrong” criteria, government must treat individual Americans unequally according to skin color to forcibly produce equal outcomes. Advocating equity over equality is part of CRT.

CRT AT WORK: “Equitable treatment means we all end up in the same place,” said Vice President Kamala Harris.

• 
  
• CRT’s effect on teaching math. 
• From https://www.dcp.edu.gov.on.ca/en/curriculum/secondary-mathematics/courses/mth1w/course-intro
• An equitable mathematics curriculum recognizes that mathematics can be subjective.
  Mathematics is often positioned as an objective and pure discipline. However, the content and the context in which it is taught, the mathematicians who are celebrated, and the importance that is placed upon mathematics by society are subjective. Mathematics has been used to normalize racism and marginalization of non-Eurocentric mathematical knowledges, and a decolonial, anti-racist approach to mathematics education makes visible its historical roots and social constructions. The Ontario Grade 9 mathematics curriculum emphasizes the need to recognize and challenge systems of power and privilege, both inside and outside the classroom, in order to eliminate systemic barriers and to serve students belonging to groups that have been historically disadvantaged and underserved in mathematics education.

Accountability

Action orientation

Autonomy

Being on time
Can-do attitude
Delay gratification
Dressing appropriately for the specific job
Education achievement 
English common law
Equal Opportunity 

Grading Math
Hard work
Independence 
Individualism
Intent counts
Measured moderation

Meritocracy 

Nuclear family
Objectivity
Operating from conscience
Operating from principles
Perfectionism
Plan for future
Politeness
Property rights
Rationality
Reading
Respect authority
Scientific method
Self reliance
Sense of urgency
Silent strength
Speaking correct English
Standardized testing
STEM courses
Striving for perfectionism
Striving toward success
Survivor mentality
Task Completion
Urgency
Valuing what can be measured
Writing

Are Democrats the problem?

“Moreover, despite the socially progressive and egalitarian outlook traditionally associated with liberalism, the most liberal Democrats actually expressed the greatest dehumanization of Republicans. This suggests that political ideology can at times be as much an expression of social identity as a reflection of deliberative policy considerations, and demonstrates the need to develop more constructive outlets for social identity maintenance.”

https://spssi.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/asap.12253

Another “white supremicist” insurrectionist

Sullivan repeatedly exhorted rioters to enter the building and overwhelm police, and seemed to convince Capitol Police officers to walk away from the glass door entry to the House Speaker’s Lobby, his video shows. Moments later, with Sullivan screaming warnings about a gun, rioter Ashli Babbitt is shot and killed on the video by a Capitol Police officer.

https://m.washingtontimes.com/news/2021/may/22/us-seizes-funds-capitol-riot-john-earle-sullivan/

Chinese Virus unusual sequence in a specific location

 THE BEGINNING – Unknown Virus

 

April 2012 six workers in Mojiang mine fell ill from a mystery illness while removing bat feces. Three of the six subsequently died.

 

From first becoming too sick to work in the mine, patient 2 survived 57 days until he died. Patient 3 survived 120 days after stopping work. Patient 4 survived 117 days and then was discharged as cured. Each had been exposed in the mine for 14 days prior to the onset of severe symptoms and they were treated for infections with symptoms (on admission) of:  a) dry cough, b) sputum, c) high fevers, especially shortly before death, 

d) difficulty breathing, and e) myalgia (sore limbs). Four had low blood oxygen diagnosed as ARDS (Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome) and immune damage considered indicative of viral infection. Tendency for thrombosis was noted in patients 2 and 4.  Symptom severity and mortality were age-related (though from a sample of 6 this must be considered anecdotal). Potential common and rare causes of their symptoms were tested for and eliminated. Treatment included ventilation (patients 2-4), steroids (all patients), antivirals (all except patient 5), and blood thinners (patients 2 and 4).   

Remote meetings were held with Zhong Nanshan at Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangdong. Zhong is the Chinese hero of the SARS epidemic, a virologist, and arguably the most famous scientist in China. Samples from the miners were later sent to the Wuhan Lab and to Zhong Nanshan. The source of infection was concluded to be  a horseshoe bat with unknown coronavirus, not SARS virus. Samples were taken from patients for “scientific research” and blood samples (at least) were sent to the Wuhan Lab testing positive for serum IgM suggesting the existence of virus infection.  June 27th, 2012, the doctors performed an unexplained thymectomy on patient 4. The thymus is an immune organ that can potentially be removed without greatly harming the patient and it could have contained large quantities of virus. 

Science magazine wrote up part of the incident in 2014 as A New Killer Virus in China?

 

MIDDLE – Virus named BtCoV/4991 (and covertly renamed RaTG13)

Virol Sin. 2016 Feb; 31(1): 31–40.Coexistence of multiple coronaviruses in several bat colonies in an abandoned mineshaft

BtCoV/4991, a partial sequence of coronavirus and RaTG13, a full sequence of a coronavirus, are from the same bat fecal sample from Mojiang mine in 2013.

 

Wuahn lab has great interest in SARS-like bat coronaviruses, searched the Mojiang mine for bat viruses on four separate occasions between August 2012 and July 2013, even though the mine is a 1,000 Km from Wuhan, collecting trips began while some of the miners were still hospitalized.

 

Partial sequence by Wuhan lab first described in 2016, BtCoV/4991 was a 370 nucleotide virus fragment collected from the Mojiang mine in 2013 by the Wuhan Lab.

 

In 2017 and 2018 Wuhan lab working with BtCoV/4991 with full sequencing.   Full sequence has one segment 100% identical to BtCoV/4991

 

In February 2020, Wuhan Lab published full sequence of BtCoV/1991 but gave it a new name, RaTG13, without mentioning BtCov/1991 when they had cited BtCoV/4991 twice in earlier publications and once in a genome sequence database .  Further there was no mention of miners or deaths RaTG13 

 

END – SARS Cov2 Pandemics hits the world
 

RaTG13 coronavirus is the closest corona virus to SARS Cov2.

MEANING  - Coronavirus RaTG13 (aka BtCoV/1991) was the likely virus that infected 9 minors from Mojjian mine in 2012. RaTG13 likely mutated or was modified into the more infectious and dangerous SARS Cov2 under selective pressure within an human/laboratory environment  over prolonged period of time/study. Wuhan Lab had SARS Cov2 in various samples, including thymus, taken from Miners in 2012. Given Wuhan Lab’s extensive work with corona viruses it is likely that SARS Cov2 was accidentally released from the Wuhan Lab. 

On Sept. 12, 2019, coro­n­avirus bat se­quences were deleted from the in­sti­tute’s data­base. Why? It changed the se­cu­rity pro­to­cols for the lab. Why? It put out re­quests for more than $600 mil­lion for a new ven­ti­la­tion sys­tem. What prompted this new need?

The story of SARS-Cov-2 started long be­fore Jan­uary 2020. We be­lieve the virus was most likely un­con­tained in a lab­o­ra­tory where it was be­ing worked on, and that it es­caped un­in­ten­tion­ally. A Har­vard study of satel­lite im­ages re­vealed a shut­down of traf­fic around the Wuhan lab in the late sum­mer and early fall of 2019. Weeks later, in late Sep­tember, the hos­pi­tal park­ing lots were fill­ing up.

Unusual Sequence in Precise Location 

Sars Cov 2 has a very unusual sequence,  ccgccg, in a very precise location that results in a spike protein with extraordinary affinity/activity (furin cleavage site) with the human ACE2 receptor, making it extraordinarily contagious and infectious. 

Since 1992 there have been at least 11 separate experiments adding a special sequence to the same location. The end result has always been supercharged viruses.

And, in the entire class of coronaviruses that includes CoV-2, the CGG-CGG combination has never been found naturally. 

Although the double CGG is suppressed naturally, the opposite is true in laboratory work. The insertion sequence of choice is the double CGG. That’s because it is readily available and convenient, and scientists have a great deal of experience inserting it. 

 

 

 

Joe will hurt jobs, economy and incomes

 

President Biden’s FY 2022 Budget Proposals: Details & Analysis

When combining the economic impact of President Biden's tax proposals with the benefit of infrastructure spending, Tax Foundation estimates that long-run GDP would decrease by 0.9 percent and American incomes would fall by an average of 1 percent, resulting in 165,000 fewer U.S. jobs. 

https://taxfoundation.org/biden-budget-proposals/?utm_source=Tax+Foundation+Newsletters&utm_campaign=52752fb2ba-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_10_17_07_28_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_8387957ec9-52752fb2ba-429570270&mc_cid=52752fb2ba&mc_eid=73b13be3bc

Already paid trillions of reparations over the past 50 years

 Already paid trillions of dollars  over the past 50 years

Affirmative action

Community reinvestment act 1977

Welfare reform in the late 60s

Housing vouchers

Food stamps

Medicaid

Small business administration loan preference

‘Reparations For Black America Already Happened,’ Black Scholar Tells Don Lemon

https://www.dailywire.com/news/reparations-for-black-america-already-happened-black-scholar-tells-don-lemon

Covid Update 20210601

 Thankfully it seems we have almost reached the point where excess deaths caused by Covid have gotten so low that they are not measurable.  Pace of vaccination continue the decline that started about the time there was a pause due to the concern about clots. The US and essentially all states have gotten to very low levels thanks to the vaccine. Compared with the major EU countries and the EU average, the US was about average.  Missouri was the poorest performing state but it was primarily NY, NJ, MA and RI that brought the US average up.