NC DOT Wants Your Input On A Plan To Push EVs

By William Teach March 2, 2023 – 7:00 am

I’m interested to see what the responses are, especially since we know that the bureaucrats will just do whatever they want if you darned peasants do not agree

NCDOT has a plan to cut pollution, promote electric vehicles. It wants your feedback.

Electric vehicleThe N.C. Department of Transportation should form a dedicated team to help the state create a transportation system that relies less on fossil fuels, according to the draft of a plan released Wednesday.

The Clean Transportation Plan outlines a strategy for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in North Carolina, by promoting use of electric vehicles and encouraging transit and non-motorized ways of getting around.

Remember, that plan is not something passed by the duly elected legislative branch, hence, not something that the Executive Branch should be allowed to implement willy nilly. Surprisingly, there are no lawsuits as of yet, but, it really hasn’t gone into effect yet

Cooper’s order set a goal of putting at least 1.25 million zero emission vehicles or ZEVs on the road in the state by 2030. ZEVs currently account for about 54,000 of the state’s 8.6 million registered vehicles, according to Jennifer Weiss, NCDOT’s senior adviser for climate change who led the effort to create the plan.

As the John Locke Foundation puts in, Cooper is trying to order North Carolinians to change how they go places, and would require about half of all new sales to be EVs.

“Clean transportation isn’t limited to just acquiring electric vehicles,” said Maya Hoon, part of the team that drafted the plan. “So reducing vehicle miles traveled by supporting infrastructure for bikers and pedestrians, rail and other public transit options will be helpful to advancing clean transportation goals in addition to bringing social, economic and health benefits that come from reducing vehicle miles traveled.”

Yeah, they want to force you peasants to walk, ride bikes, and take public transportation rather than privately owned vehicles. Which, if you live in the South, is not that easy in bigger cities. Not with the way the roads are laid out. We have a saying here “everything’s in a circle.” It just grows outward from the center. There’s so much mixed use that “small” travel can be difficult and dangerous. You can’t just walk on down to the bodega to get your groceries. Even riding a scooter can be difficult, with the way things are spread out. I wouldn’t want to ride my bike to the grocery store, which is about 2 miles away, driving distance.

Oh, and it’s not the government’s job to force compliance.

For more information about the Clean Transportation Plan, including a link to the draft, go to bit.ly/3ZAs3s9. Another option, including the feedback form, is at publicinput.com/NC-Clean-Transportation.

Again, I’m not against EVs. I would have one if it wasn’t much more than a regular car. My big issue is on charging it. If I could have a Civic EV which could be charged quickly, I’d be OK in most cases. My only annoyance would be on range on the few times I go down to the beach or mountains. But, it’s not government’s job to force this on me. Especially when the people trying to force this aren’t using “zero emission vehicles” themselves right now. And that’s the feedback I’m giving. As one of my coworkers is fond of saying “mind your business!”

Read: NC DOT Wants Your Input On A Plan To Push EVs »

Posted in AGW Socialism, Global Warming, NC News | 4 Comments | Trackback URL

Biden Admin Upset Over You Pesky Citizens Losing Faith In Arming Ukraine

By William Teach March 2, 2023 – 6:45 am

You peasants should be listening to your betters, doing as you’re told, and just staying out of the way

Biden Challenged by Softening Public Support for Arming Ukraine

When he made his surprise wartime trip to the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv last week, President Biden reassured that country with great confidence that “the Americans stand with you.” But the question that remains unanswered is: For how long?

For all of the president’s bravado while he was abroad, the politics of Ukraine back home in the United States are shifting noticeably and, for the White House, worryingly. Polls show public support for arming the Ukrainians softening while the two leading Republican presidential candidates are increasingly speaking out against involvement in the war.

While the bipartisan coalition in Congress favoring Ukraine has been strong in the year since Russia’s invasion, supporters of more aid fear the centrifugal forces of the emerging presidential contest and growing taxpayer fatigue with shipping tens of billions of dollars overseas may undercut the war effort before Moscow can be defeated. And some of them are frustrated that Mr. Biden has not done more to shore up support.

Well, Biden and his people haven’t really done much to explain just how Russia will be booted from Ukraine, eh? Nor what the overall plan is. Nor, how this will be different from when Russia invaded and took over Crimea when Biden was VP, and still has it. It’s just a whole bunch of “we got this, trust us.”

Overall, public support for Ukraine aid has fallen from 60 percent last May to 48 percent now, according to surveys by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. The share of Americans who think the United States has given too much to Ukraine has grown from 7 percent a year ago to 26 percent last month, according to the Pew Research Center.

And even supporters make clear their commitment is not without bounds. While 50 percent of those surveyed by Fox News said American support should continue for “as long as it takes to win,” 46 percent said the time frame should be limited.

Support is nosediving among Republicans and Independents, but, among Democrats, who don’t do much else but use hashtags and Ukraine flags on social media, it’s still somewhat strong.

Aides said Mr. Biden’s speeches in Kyiv and Warsaw were intended for an American audience as well as international ones. But the president has shrugged off concerns about ebbing public support for the Ukraine supply effort, suggesting it is relegated mainly to what he calls MAGA Republicans, after former President Donald J. Trump’s Make America Great Again slogan.

When David Muir of ABC News noted in an interview last week that many Americans were asking how long they could keep spending on Ukraine, the president quarreled with the premise. “I’m not sure how many are asking that,” Mr. Biden said. “I know the MAGA crowd is. The right-wing Republicans are talking about, we can’t do this. We find ourselves in a situation where the cost of walking away could be considerably higher than the cost of helping Ukraine maintain its independence.”

What would be the cost? David failed to ask for that detail. If Russia controlled Ukraine, what would happen? And, why do we care? Leaders in other nations aren’t explaining, either.

“The problem is that the longer the war continues, the greater the risk that U.S. resolve will wane, no matter how much effort the president puts into convincing Americans to stay the course,” she said. “That’s why it’s so critical that the United States lean in now and help Ukraine end things militarily.”

Actually, the longer it goes on and the more the Biden admin and other governments give Ukraine in the way of advanced weapons the closer it gets to WWIII. And, considering Biden’s horrendous Afghanistan withdrawal, how much can we trust this administration?

Read: Biden Admin Upset Over You Pesky Citizens Losing Faith In Arming Ukraine »

Posted in Europe, Joe Biden | 10 Comments | Trackback URL

Lake Levels Are Rising And This Is All Your Fault

By William Teach March 1, 2023 – 1:00 pm

This was just a few months ago

Bodies of water all over North America are drying up due to drought, climate change: Experts

And there are plenty blaming climate apocalypse on rivers, streams, ponds, and lakes drying up. Now

Lake levels are rising across the world and climate change is to blame

ON THE shores of Lake Baringo in Kenya, a slow-motion disaster is unfolding. For the past decade, the water has been steadily rising, swallowing homes, shops, health centres, latrines, electricity supplies, farmland, tourist resorts and more. Malaria, cholera, typhoid and dysentery are increasing. Wildlife is under threat; conflict has broken out between people and animals and old grievances between neighbouring groups have resurfaced.

Since it started rising, Baringo’s surface area has more than doubled, and it isn’t alone. Right across the East African Rift valley, lake water is creeping over animal and human heads. And where East Africa leads, much of the rest of the world is following. North America’s Great Lakes have been rising too. Overall, lakes the world over have expanded to occupy an extra 46,000 square kilometres of space since 1984, roughly the area of Denmark.

When we talk about inland water bodies, dwindling ones such as the Aral Sea in central Asia, Lake Chad in central Africa and the Great Salt Lake in Utah dominate the conversation. But the global trend is actually the opposite. The cause of these increases has been debated for years, but the consensus has now settled on the real culprit: us. You have probably fretted about impending sea-level rise. Welcome to the untold story of another human-made catastrophe in the making: lake-level rise.

See? No matter the question, the answer is always anthropogenic climate change. Doesn’t matter where it is around the world, they’ll find a way to blame ACC.  Consensus is not science. Facts, data, testing, that’s science. But, again, this is not about science. Never was.

It couldn’t possibly have anything to do with land use, urbanization, land changes, right? It’s not like part of Kenya is dominated by a tectonic plate, which created the Great Rift Valley and lots of volcanoes, right?

Read: Lake Levels Are Rising And This Is All Your Fault »

Posted in AGW Scaremongering, Global Warming | 10 Comments | Trackback URL

If All You See…

By William Teach March 1, 2023 – 1:00 pm

…is a wonderful low carbon mode of transportation, you might just be a Warmist

The blog of the day is Animal Magnetism, with a post on some mask failure news.

Read: If All You See… »

Posted in If All You See | 5 Comments | Trackback URL

FBI Director Says They’ve Assessed For Some Time That COVID Came From A Lab Leak

By William Teach March 1, 2023 – 10:30 am

What, exactly, is “assessed for some time”? How long has the FBI thought this? That would be an extremely important time frame, since anyone who said that it came from the Wuhan lab and was then shut down, blocked on social media, and treated like a nutty conspiracy theorist deserves an apology

‘Potential lab incident’: FBI director Wray speaks publicly for 1st time on COVID-19 origin

FBI director Christopher Wray on Tuesday spoke publicly for the first time on the bureau’s assessment that the COVID-19 virus “most likely” originated from a potential lab incident in Wuhan, China.

He also faulted the Chinese government in an interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier for, he said, trying to thwart the work of U.S. agencies investigating the beginnings of the global pandemic.

“The FBI has for quite some time now assessed that the origins of the pandemic are most likely a potential lab incident in Wuhan,” he said.

“Let’s step back for a second. You know, the FBI has folks agents, professionals, analysts, virologists, microbiologist, etc, who focus specifically on the dangers of biological threats, which include things like novel viruses like COVID and the concerns that they’re in the wrong hands,” he said, “some bad guys, a hostile nation state, a terrorist a criminal, the threats that those those could pose.

“So, here you’re talking about a potential leak from a Chinese government-controlled lab that killed millions of Americans, and that’s precisely what that capability was designed for,” he continued. “I should add that, that our work related to this continues. And there are not a whole lot of details I can share that aren’t — aren’t classified,” he told Baier.

The one necessary detail, again, is when this determination was made. What day, month, and year did they come to this finding? Was it recent? Last year? 2021? 2020?

Read: FBI Director Says They’ve Assessed For Some Time That COVID Came From A Lab Leak »

Posted in Bat Soup Virus | 13 Comments | Trackback URL

House Republicans Question Pentagon On Ukraine Funding

By William Teach March 1, 2023 – 6:45 am

Obviously, they didn’t get particularly satisfying or open answers, and, interestingly, some Democrats were also interested in protecting The People’s money and wondering just what’s going on

Lawmakers Question Pentagon on Ukraine Funds, Signaling Fresh Doubts

Republicans in Congress sharply questioned senior Pentagon officials on Tuesday about the tens of billions of dollars in military and other aid the United States has sent to Ukraine, casting doubt on whether they would embrace future spending as Democrats pleaded for a cleareyed assessment of how much more money would be needed.

The exchanges at committee hearings, coming just days after the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, highlighted how concerns about the high cost of sending weapons to Kyiv have intensified on Capitol Hill. The growing doubts have threatened what was once a strong bipartisan consensus in favor of the aid and could make it more difficult for the Biden administration to win congressional approval of funds to replenish its military assistance accounts. The funding inflection point could come as soon as this summer, months earlier than previously expected.

The hearings also illustrated how members of both parties, despite expressing confidence that a majority in Congress remains committed to supporting Ukraine, are concerned that a determined minority — including right-wing Republicans who eschew U.S. involvement in foreign conflicts and liberal antiwar Democrats — may weaken that resolve if the war continues to drag on.

Yes, God forbid that Congress and We The People are provided with a clear and detailed explanation of where are money has gone, and, really, Americans are losing faith in continuing to prop up a corrupt and authoritarian regime in a war that could lead to something affecting the entire world.

“How many more times do you think Congress needs to provide aid?” Representative Ro Khanna, Democrat of California, asked Colin H. Kahl, the under secretary of defense for policy, during his appearance before the Armed Services panel. “What do you think, at the end, is the end game?”

Good question. It didn’t solicit much of an answer

Pentagon leaders were reluctant to commit to either a figure or a timeline upon which they would be seeking additional funds, saying that the vagaries of the war made it impossible to commit to a schedule.

Where’s the money going? Especially since

Russia will emerge from the Ukraine war a ‘shattered military power,’ top Pentagon official says

Russia will emerge from its war in Ukraine a “shattered military power,” a senior Pentagon official said on Tuesday, stressing that the country has yet to achieve any of its goals and is expected to continue to struggle on the battlefield.

Colin Kahl, the under secretary of defense for policy, told US lawmakers that the situation looked “dire and pessimistic” for Ukraine when Russian forces first invaded in late February 2022, but after a year of fighting, it has become clear that Russian President Vladimir Putin has “lost” the war.

They like to make lots of pronouncements, but, not a lot of real answers. Or accountability.

Read: House Republicans Question Pentagon On Ukraine Funding »

Posted in Current Affairs | 12 Comments | Trackback URL

Surprise: St. Greta Wants Wind Farm Blocked

By William Teach February 28, 2023 – 3:00 pm

Have you ever noticed that Warmists say they love “green” energy, but, when it comes time to construct it they block it?

Uh huh. From the link

Dozens of activists, including Greta Thunberg of neighboring Sweden, blocked the entrance to Norway’s energy ministry in Oslo Monday to protest a wind farm they say hinders the rights of the Sami Indigenous people to raise reindeer in Arctic Norway.

The activists, mainly teenagers, lay outside the ministry entrance holding Sami flags and a poster reading “Land Back.”

The protesters from organizations called Young Friends of The Earth Norway and the Norwegian Sami Association’s youth council NSR-Nuorat, said “the ongoing human rights violations” against Sami reindeer herders “must come to an end.” Several of the activists donned the Sami’s traditional bright-colored dress and put up a tent used by the Arctic people.

In October 2021, Norway’s Supreme Court ruled that the construction of the wind turbines violated the rights of the Sami, who have been using the land to raise reindeer for centuries. However, the wind farm is still operating.

“It is absurd that the Norwegian government has chosen to ignore the ruling,” said Thunberg, who joined the protest early Monday.

They have a point, however, last time I checked St. Greta wasn’t a Norwegian citizen. Why is she involved?

Read: Surprise: St. Greta Wants Wind Farm Blocked »

Posted in Energy, Global Warming | 8 Comments | Trackback URL

If All You See…

By William Teach February 28, 2023 – 1:00 pm

…is wonderful orange juice, which will soon come from orange trees in Canada, you might just be a Warmist

The blog of the day is Jo Nova, with a post on China approving 2 new coal plants every week for when renewables fail.

Read: If All You See… »

Posted in If All You See | 5 Comments | Trackback URL

DOT Inspector General Is A Big Fan Of Mayor Pete’s Private Jet Travel

By William Teach February 28, 2023 – 10:30 am

So much so, the IG plans to inspect Pete’s use of private jets

Inspector general investigating Pete Buttigieg’s extensive private jet travel after Fox News Digital report

The Department of Transportation’s (DOT) internal watchdog is opening an audit into Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg over his extensive use of private jets, the agency confirmed to Fox News Digital on Monday.

The DOT Inspector General investigation comes roughly two months following a Fox News Digital report that showed Buttigieg, who has repeatedly argued in favor of aggressive action to combat climate change, has taken at least 18 flights using taxpayer-funded private jets since taking office in early 2021. Flight records reviewed by Fox News Digital aligned with Buttigieg’s internal calendar obtained at the time by government watchdog group Americans for Public Trust (APT).

“After Americans for Public Trust helped determine Secretary Buttigieg’s excessive use of taxpayer-funded government jets, we are pleased to see that his air travel is now under investigation,” APT executive director Caitlin Sutherland told Fox News Digital on Monday.

“Everyday Americans have faced unprecedented flight cancelations and disruptions, but Buttigieg has continued to fly private, even on a Coast Guard plane and even when commercial options were readily available.” (snip through a bunch of examples)

The transportation secretary also took a military aircraft to attend the Fifth Invictus Games in Europe with his husband Chasten Buttigieg in April 2022. And, that same month, Buttigieg jetted off to New York City on one of the government planes for a radio interview and two brief meetings before returning hours later.

On another occassion, he flew on a government jet to Canada for an aviation conference, and to attend an LGBT conference. Pete responded

Which seems to be not so. Further, why is Pete flying at all? He keeps yammering about how bad having a carbon footprint is and how great trains, buses, and other public transportation are. Why doesn’t he take those wonderful trains? It was almost a year ago that he was yammering about how awesome it was that the infrastructure bill had $4.5 billion for trains and buses and how public transportation was the solution to the climate crisis (scam). And wanted laws about it.

Read: DOT Inspector General Is A Big Fan Of Mayor Pete’s Private Jet Travel »

Posted in Climahypocrites, Democrats, Global Warming | 8 Comments | Trackback URL

Climate Cult: California’s Snowy Weather Is Your Fault

By William Teach February 28, 2023 – 7:15 am

It’s really a hallmark of cult’s that they just don’t consider how insane their ramblings sound like, and they’ll try and convince people that what they’re pushing is totally real

How climate change is making California’s weather more extreme

In the midst of a two-decades-long megadrought that climate scientists say has been made worse because of rising global temperatures, California has been hit with an especially cold and wet winter, in which low temperature records have been set and the Sierra snowpack is poised to eclipse its all-time high.

But the whiplash from one extreme to another is consistent with climate change, experts say. Since the start of the Industrial Revolution, California’s average temperatures have risen between 2-4 degrees Fahrenheit, and the dramatic variability seen in recent years is a consequence of that fact.

“A lot of folks are saying, ‘Everything is getting more extreme, it’s wetter and drier and hotter and colder.’ One of those isn’t true,” UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain told Yahoo News. “Three out of the four are in California. The one thing that isn’t happening is it’s not getting colder.”

No matter what happens, the answer is always ‘climate change’. Is it any wonder I started referring to it as Hotcoldwetdry for well over a decade? Somehow, greenhouse gases are making it so hot that it snows in Los Angeles. Which, by the way, happened as far back as 1879 (in recorded history). And two inches during the CO2 safe period of 1932.

So, while some parts of Southern California saw rare blizzard conditions last week, and snow fell at unusually low elevations in places like the Bay Area, those events in no way disprove climate change, which is measured over a longer time horizon than a single week, month or season. Nor do the brutal cold snaps show that climate change is simultaneously causing the world to undergo cooling.

Despite saying this is the long term, they blamed a short term on You. This is all just the ramblings of a doomsday cult. If we had an impartial, skeptical, and honest media they would be pointing this out. They apparently do not realize that with the implementation of authoritarian government these same journalists will be under the complete thumb of government, and will be told how to do their jobs, what they can investigate, and what they can write.

Read: Climate Cult: California’s Snowy Weather Is Your Fault »

Posted in Climate Cult, Global Warming | 14 Comments | Trackback URL
Pirate's Cove