Thursday Open Thread

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93 comments to Thursday Open Thread

  • #
    nb

    Here is the analysis you won’t get on the ABC:

    The Once and Future Scandal
    Victor Davis Hanson – February 9th, 2020
    https://amgreatness.com/2020/02/09/the-once-and-future-scandal/

    Now let’s talk about the role of the state in the global warming conspiracy.

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  • #
    el gordo

    On the previous open thread I discovered Pitcairn Island and found a rainfall anomaly.

    https://www.worldweatheronline.com/lang/en-au/adamstown-weather-averages/pn.aspx

    Any suggestions on the cause of the blip?

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  • #
    hatband

    Raining steadily in Brisbane and the River Catchment for for a week.
    https://www.seqwater.com.au/dam-release-update

    No releases planned for Wivenhoe or any of the Gated Dams, though water is spilling out of the ungated Dams.

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    • #
      BoyfromTottenham

      Hatband, I have been watching the SEQ dams. We have gone from 5 dams spilling to 9 in less than a week, and reading the notes on Wivenhoe and Somerset dams, they are both limited in capacity as follows:
      ‘On 21 January 2016, temporary full supply levels were enacted for Somerset Dam and Wivenhoe Dam (part of the Somerset Dam Improvement Project). These equate to storage percentages of approximately 80% for Somerset Dam and 90% for Wivenhoe Dam. These temporary full supply levels will remain in place until current dam improvement works at Somerset Dam are completed. Seqwater will commence flood releases from Wivenhoe and Somerset dams if storage levels exceed the enacted temporary full supply levels as a result of rainfall in the dam catchments.’

      This could get interesting, because Somerset spill goes straight into Wivenhoe, increasing the fill rate of Wivenhoe, which then has to spill when it reaches 90%. And if it keeps raining around Brisbane like it has there could be a scramble to spill lots of water, which like in 2011 will cause downstream flooding. Get where I am going with this?

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      • #
        hatband

        Thanks for your research, BT.
        Yeah, i’m getting the picture.
        It’s 7:16 PM at the moment, been raining all day here.

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  • #
    pat

    WXcycles on Jo’s “IPCC” thread, wrote:

    Latest satellite image:
    https://i.ibb.co/WDYTFKX/Alleged-Tropical-Cyclone-Screenshot-2020-02-13-Windy-as-forecasted.jpg
    That’ no ‘tropical cyclone’, it’s an “East Coast Low” at this point.

    I responded with:

    16 minutes ago, it was still a ***cyclone for ABC:

    13 Feb: ABC: Nepean Dam breaks its banks as rainfall fills crucial water catchments
    By Lily Mayers
    Updated 16 minutes ago
    VIDEO: 34s: The overflowing Nepean Dam

    After months of drought, the Nepean Dam has spilled over after more than 700 millimetres of rain drenched parts of the region across the past week.
    The heritage-listed dam, south-west of Sydney, is at 100 per cent capacity and gushing into the Nepean River, WaterNSW said.
    Last week Sydney’s metropolitan dam systems were at 33 per cent capacity, but after 244 mm of rain fell into the Warragamba catchment, the system is now at 75 per cent capacity.

    Despite the heavy rainfall across NSW, Sydney Water said level 2 water restrictions remain in place for Greater Sydney, the Blue Mountains and the Illawarra.
    “While we welcome the rain, it’s way too soon to see if there’s going to be a start of drought recovery or a welcome temporary relief from the drought conditions,” said Sydney Water’s Peter Hadfield.

    The downpour has been bolstered by multiple rain gauges around the Nepean system recording heavy falls as well as ***Cyclone Uesi looming off the eastern states of the country…

    “Inland of Wollongong saw more than 700 mm of rainfall, while Katoomba has had a high of 545mm, and quite a number of surrounding areas have experienced between 250-500 mm, including Oberon, Mt Boyce and High Range,” (BOM duty forecaster David) Wilke said…

    The torrential rain soaking much of the state has significantly dampened over 100 bushfires, with only 24 bushfires still alight.
    The NSW Rural Fire Service said over 30 bushfires have been extinguished in the last week.
    https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-13/nepean-dam-overflows-into-nepean-river/11961302

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  • #
    robert rosicka

    When it comes to CAGW don’t be like Dave and believe everything on the ABC , go looking for the actual evidence they say is in .

    https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-13/coal-town-hit-by-fires-struggles-with-climate-change/11950552

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  • #
    Kim

    Why is solar power called renewable energy? technically there is nothing renewable about it. A few thoughts :-

    In ancient times the ancient Egyptians used to worship Ra the sun god. Every night Ra would ‘die’. Every morning Ra would be ‘reborn’ – be renewed.

    In the 18th Dynasty there arose Pharaoh Akhenaten who wanted to dispense with the ancient gods and replace them with a single God – ie to introduce modern monotheistic religion to Egypt.

    And there was Moses, an Israelite who grew up in the pharaoh’s household, who introduced monotheistic religion to the Jews, which Christianity inherited.

    After Pharaoh Akhenaten’s brief reign Egypt reverted to the ancient religion.

    In modern times we have the Freemasons who follow a form of ancient Egyptian myths and traditions.

    Are these struggles that we have in modern times actually struggles that go back thousands of years? Warmism being a part of them?

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    • #
      yarpos

      pretty simplistic buzzwords about the fuel really thats all

      but yes there is really nothing renewable about them when it comes to making the machinery

      even basic recycling is becoming an issue with wind turbine blades now reaching end of life, and batteries are coming down the pipeline

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    • #
      BoyfromTottenham

      Kim, even stranger – ARENA and CEFC have just announced a $ multi-million grant and loan funding package to Acciona for a new $500m ‘renewable’ generator that will take 300,000 tonnes of ‘yellow bin’ rubbish from Perth councils and burn it to generate a mere 29 MW of electricity.
      They could probably have built a 500 MW baseload fossil-fueled generator for the same price – over 17 times better value for our money.
      So rubbish from our yellow bins is ‘renewable’ too! How clever these bureaucrats are!

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  • #
    pat

    found the 30 Aug 1999 Guardian article below via a Breitbart article by Thomas D. Williams, Ph.D., headlined “Remembering Climate Alarmists’ False Prophecies”. he noted the writer, Jamie Wilson, was promoted shortly afterwards. for knowledgeable sceptic, it’s best to concentrate solely on the Guardian piece:

    LinkedIn: Jamie Wilson, Head of International news at The Guardian
    Jan 2000 – Present·20 years 2 months

    30 Aug 1999: Guardian: Tourist spots could be too hot to handle
    by Jamie Wilson
    Spain will be ridden with malaria, the eastern Mediterranean will be as hot as the Sahara desert, flash floods will swamp parts of the American coastline and there will be almost no snow in the Alps.
    This is the doomsday scenario painted in a new report on the effects of global warming on 10 of the planet’s most popular tourist destinations in the next century.
    The study, commissioned by the World Wild Fund for Nature, found that profitable tourist destinations could be turned into “holiday horror stories”…

    The report, Climate change and its impacts on tourism, carried out by the University of East Anglia’s climatic research unit for WWF, suggests that tour operators and countries which rely on holidaymakers for foreign revenue will need to take account of the changing climate when planning new resorts or upgrading facilities…

    David Viner, the senior research scientist who compiled the study, said: “Areas such as the Mediterranean – a popular destination for British tourists – could become unbearable during the traditional summer holiday season. As temperatures begin to soar, many tourists will stay away.”…

    The report says that a decline in cloud cover over Australia will increase exposure to the sun’s harmful rays, increasing the risk of sunburn and skin cancer…

    Meanwhile, some islands in the Maldives could disappear as they are submerged by rising sea levels.
    https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1999/aug/30/jamiewilson

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  • #
    Brian

    From the photo Dave’s home was built on a ridge with large gum trees right next to the house. He was incredibly fortunate that all he lost was his laundry shed. While the biblical wise man builds his house on a rock rather than sand a wise Australian avoids building a house on a ridge amongst the gum trees. Dave simply feels better blaming climate change because then he doesn’t have to accept the consequences of his decisions.

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    • #
      Graeme#4

      We really have to get away from the “Home among the gum trees” idea. A lot of the bushfire photos of lost houses seemed to imply that they were surrounded by eucalypts, and the Kangaroo Island Resort apparently had shrubbery right up to its walls.

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  • #
    pat

    Big Tech continues to show its political bias…and gets away with it. note mention of Reuters and Breitbart too (Breitbart is partisan, don’t you know?):

    11 Feb: Axios: Media Trends by Sara Fischer
    3. Scoop: Google’s next news investment
    The Young Turks (TYT), one of the largest progressive digital publishers on YouTube, is receiving funding from Google-owned YouTube to launch an online course called TYT Academy that focuses on the creation of digital-first local news. Sources say the investment is in the mid-six figures range.

    Why it matters: The investment is part of YouTube’s $25 million commitment to news efforts, which is part of the $300 million Google News Initiative that was announced in 2018.
    As one of YouTube’s most successful publishers with 4.6 million for its main account and millions of followers across its affiliated channels, TYT is a logical fit for this type of investment.
    The new class features a two-track video series, with each containing 8 videos. Users will take short quizzes along the way, and must pass a final exam after completing each track to earn a TYT Academy certificate…

    For now, the course is in a trial period. TYT plans to expand the program more broadly after first testing it with 10-15 people…
    Yes, but: While TYT takes a strong progressive position as an outlet, Steven Oh, TYT’s Chief Business Officer and the creator of TYT Academy, told Axios on a phone call that TYT is “not interested in cranking out journalists who share our political viewpoint whatsoever.”

    The big picture: Facebook has also invested in online news courses from publishers. In December, Axios reported that Facebook would be funding an online deepfakes course for newsrooms by ***Reuters.

    Our thought bubble: The videos, which have already been posted online for about two months for this course, appear to be non-partisan, but it’s notable that YouTube is investing in a course from TYT, which has a progressive bent.

    Facebook has said that it will include partisan publishers like Breitbart in its news tab, ***but says it won’t necessarily pay Breitbart. The company hasn’t released a list of all of the publishers who are being paid.
    https://www.axios.com/newsletters/axios-media-trends-7fc9d664-6994-4bc2-a742-23808bbeb2b7.html

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  • #
    pat

    followup to a Google funding The Young Turks article, which is in moderation.

    and this is not interference in the 2020 election? lol:

    13 Feb: Reuters: Facebook starts fact-checking partnership with Reuters
    by Supantha Mukherjee in Bengaluru
    Facebook Inc said on Wednesday it has reached an agreement with news agency Reuters, a unit of Thomson Reuters Corp, to fact-check content posted on the social media platform and its photo-sharing app Instagram.

    Under pressure to remove fake news on its platform ahead of the U.S. presidential elections, Facebook started a U.S. pilot program in December to detect misinformation faster.
    The move came after U.S. intelligence agencies said that social media platforms were used in a Russian cyber-influence campaign aimed at interfering in the 2016 U.S. election – a claim Moscow has denied.

    A newly created unit at Reuters will fact-check user-generated photos, videos, headlines and other content for Facebook’s U.S. audience in both English and Spanish, the news agency said in a statement. Financial terms were not disclosed.

    Facebook works with seven other fact-checking partners in the United States, including Associated Press and Agence France-Presse.
    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-facebook-partnership-reuters/facebook-starts-fact-checking-partnership-with-reuters-idUSKBN2062K4?il=0

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  • #
    pat

    13 Feb: WA Today: WA Labor MPs named as part of pro-coal, right-wing ‘Otis Group’
    By Nathan Hondros
    A West Australian federal Labor MP who reportedly belongs to a factional dinner club known as the Otis Group – named after the Canberra restaurant where they meet – has downplayed its gatherings as nothing unusual.
    About 20 right-faction shadow ministers and MPs were named as part of the group, which includes Brand MP Madeleine King, Burt MP Matt Keogh and Senator Glenn Sterle.

    South Australian senator Don Farrell told media the group had been formed to support coal workers.
    Ms King, who as opposition trade spokeswoman is Labor’s most senior WA federal politician, said there was “nothing unusual about MPs having dinner in Canberra during sitting weeks”…

    Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese, who is from Labor’s left faction, had also played down the importance of the group and denied there was tension within Labor between the party’s climate change positions and coal workers.
    One of the Otis group’s organisers, NSW MP Joel Fitzgibbon, has been outspoken on his support for the coal industry in his electorate of Hunter…

    Deputy Labor leader Richard Marles said on Sky News the issue was “total beat up”.
    “On any given night, in this town there are groups of politicians having dinner,” he said…READ ON
    https://www.watoday.com.au/politics/western-australia/wa-labor-mps-named-as-part-of-pro-coal-right-wing-otis-group-20200213-p540h9.html

    13 Feb: SBS: Anthony Albanese moves to play down impact of Labor’s secret coal group
    by AAP/SBS
    A pro-coal group of Labor members and senators reportedly surprised the party’s leadership, who only discovered their existence through the media…
    The so-called Otis Group wants to push Labor to the right on issues like coal and climate change…

    TWEET: Matt Canavan
    “I think the secret pro-coal Labor group of MPs should rename themselves The Unicorns. A much snappier name!”…READ ON
    https://www.sbs.com.au/news/anthony-albanese-moves-to-play-down-impact-of-labor-s-secret-coal-group

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    • #
      pat

      Kieran Gilbert & panel on Sky were discussing Otis Group, which reminded me I hadn’t posted links about that, but then Gilbert seemed to steer the discussion to the following, not using the Kyoto credits, as a way the Coalition could improve their CAGW cred and appease the Green/Labor innercity crowd or something:

      13 Jan: AFR: Morrison could ditch Kyoto credits
      by John Kehoe
      Prime Minister Scott Morrison has signalled the government could stop claiming Kyoto credits to “meet and beat” its carbon emissions reduction target, declaring in response to the bushfire disaster that climate change policy would be updated without destroying jobs and regional economies…
      Asked about being the only country which had officially committed to claim Kyoto carry-over credits to meet its 26-28 per cent emissions reduction target by 2030, Mr Morrison said “if we are in a position where we don’t need them and we are able to continue to reduce our emissions and use the technology”, Australian climate policy would evolve…
      The government and climate analysts are increasingly confident Australia will not require international credits to achieve its target, due to rapid renewable energy take-up by business and households…

      Mr Morrison said new low-emissions technology had evolved since the 1997 Kyoto deal in Japan and credits would be used “if needed” in the future.
      Government sources confirmed it was poised to reconsider whether to continue claiming the credits banked for exceeding its earlier Kyoto targets.
      One option is to retain the carry-over credits as a safety net or insurance policy, rather than an absolute measure to hit the Paris 2030 targets…

      Frontier Economics climate change head Matt Harris believes Australia would not need to use carry-over credits to reach its Paris commitments, due to new emissions-reduction technology and federal and state government policies driving more renewable energy.
      Mr Harris has said he “wouldn’t be surprised” if Australia reached its 2030 Paris target by around 2023, even excluding Kyoto carry-over credits that are in the bank for exceeding past targets…
      https://www.afr.com/politics/federal/bushfire-anger-leads-pm-to-flag-ditching-kyoto-credits-20200112-p53qqt

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      • #
        robert rosicka

        Otis group were well known just under reported by the MSM I wonder why ?

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        • #
          OriginalSteve

          It will be interesting to see if Albanese is going to be rolled..>I suspect he may not be a big enough climate radical to hold the position…..

          It seems the Left here may become as unhinged as in the US, if I’m right. Time will tell.

          Abbott was rolled coz he wasnt eco-loopy…..

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          • #
            Serp

            I understood that Kevin07 Redux had implemented rules to lock up the leadership safe from any challenge so I’m curious to know exactly how a “rolling” of Albanese is to be achieved.

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    • #
      hatband

      The big problem for Anthony Albanese isn’t Policy, but personality.
      The bloke’s a snob, he has no respect for anyone lees fortunate than himself. and no matter how much spin his mates in the Media put on him, he’ll be another Doc Evatt if he lasts long enough.

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      • #
        robert rosicka

        Explain how Abbott won then hatband !

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        • #
          GD

          The big problem for Anthony Albanese isn’t Policy, but personality.
          The bloke’s a snob, he has no respect for anyone less fortunate than himself

          Agreed, hatband.

          Explain how Abbott won then hatband !

          What are you on about, Robert?

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    • #
      pat

      explanation re:

      TWEET: Matt Canavan
      “I think the secret pro-coal Labor group of MPs should rename themselves The Unicorns”…

      11 Feb: SBS: Backing new coal-fired power stations like ‘supporting unicorns,’ Anthony Albanese says
      AAP/SBS
      Federal Labor leader Anthony Albanese has likened the prospect of backing new coal-fired power stations in Australia to believing in unicorns…
      Repeatedly asked if a future Labor government would allow new coal projects to proceed, the federal opposition leader said: “You may as well ask me if I support unicorns.”
      “I don’t think there’s a place for coal-fired power plants in Australia, full stop,” he told ABC radio on Tuesday…

      A fresh round of infighting has broken out within the coalition over climate and energy policy, after the federal government promised $4 million for a feasibility study into a coal-fired power station in north Queensland.
      “The truth is no private sector operation will touch a new coal-fired power plant with a barge pole,” Mr Albanese said.
      “This is hush money for the climate change deniers in the coalition.”…

      Former resources minister Matt Canavan is the loudest backer of the Collinsville project…
      “I welcome people have different views – some of my colleagues or others – want to have a different opinion to mine, that’s their right,” he told reporters.
      “I just hope that they’d consider at the next election coming up to Collinsville with a convoy, perhaps of cars and vehicles, and holding a rally there to protest against a coal-fired power station.
      “Particularly if they live in Sydney, Melbourne, Tasmania. Please come up to north Queensland and tell us how we’re all morally corrupt, it’d help us a lot.”
      https://www.sbs.com.au/news/backing-new-coal-fired-power-stations-like-supporting-unicorns-anthony-albanese-says

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  • #
    Raymond

    PLEASE SHARE and EDUCATE
    The two links below are a series of educational charts on CO2 and Climate Change. These charts are as unbiased as you can make them.

    The world of CO2
    https://www.ric-communications.ch/referenzen/simple-science-1.html
    – N° 1 Earth’s atmospheric composition
    – N° 2 Natural sources of CO2 emissions
    – N° 3 Global anthropogenic CO2 emissions
    – N° 4 CO2 – Carbon dioxide molecule
    – N° 5 The global carbon cycle
    – N° 6 Carbon and plant respiration
    – N° 7 Plant categories and abundance (C3, C4 & CAM Plants)
    – N° 8 Photosynthesis, the C3 vs C4 gap
    – N° 9 Plant respiration and CO2
    – N° 10 The logarithmic temperature rise of higher CO2 levels.
    – N° 11 Earth’s atmospheric composition in relationship to CO2
    – N° 12 Human respiration and CO2 concentrations.
    – N° 13 600 million years of temperature change and atmospheric CO2

    The World of Climate Change
    http://www.ric-communications.ch/referenzen/simple-science-2.html
    – N° 1 600 million years of global temperature change
    – N° 2 Earth‘s temperature record for the last 400,000 years
    – N° 3 Holocene period and average northern hemispheric temperatures
    – N° 4 140 years of global mean temperature
    – N° 5 120 m of sea level rise over the past 20‘000 years
    – N° 6 Eastern European alpine glacier history during the Holocene period.

    I would think that most visitors to JoNova site understand the importance of CO2 and all its benefits. I therefore don’t think these charts are of interest since the opinion here is clear, CO2 is good and not evil. However we live in our bubble and the rest of the world isn’t so informed.

    So if you need some helpful charts to better explain what CO2 is, this is the place to go. These step by step guides start at the beginning and are ideal for beginners. No propaganda, no tricks, only facts. The data is drawn from Scientists and institutions like NASA, GISS, NOAA and IPCC. YES the IPCC also provides data that is correct.

    This is my small contribution in helping to put a more balanced view the hysteria over Climate Change.

    Ray

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  • #
    Peter C

    Where does all that water go?

    Over at WUWT there is a story about satellite altimetry.
    https://wattsupwiththat.com/2020/02/12/gmsl-data-correction-follow-up/

    The story is about some missing data and a discrepancy between the tabulated data and the same data when graphed.

    However my interest is about the annual periodical fluctuation in Global Mean Sea Level, which varies regularly by 10-15mm every year. It may be due to snow cover in Siberia and Northern Canada, which then melts in summer. None the less 10mm is an enormous amount of water when taken over the whole of the oceans!

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  • #
    soldier

    A few days ago a report was posted on WUWT about a Cambridge professor who said we all have to give up flying to save the planet or change over to electric airplanes.
    The question then arises, are electric airplanes at all feasible?
    Given that 1 kg of jet fuel holds 49 times the energy of 1 kg of the best currently available battery the said battery would be very large and heavy.
    A Boeing 737 (small airliner) holds 20,000 litres of jet fuel. To match the equivalent total fuel energy an electric equivalent would need to hold 784,000 kg of battery – that’s 784 tonnes of battery in a plane that currently has a maximum take-off weight of 174 tonnes. It would never get off the ground.
    That fact alone makes electric passenger aircraft a ridiculous proposition.

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    • #
      pat

      soldier –

      not as crazy as this Cambridge Prof:

      10 Feb: CambridgeShireLive: ‘The only solution for climate change is letting the human race become extinct’
      Anglia Ruskin professor Patricia MacCormack has written a controversial book on how our extinction could save the planet
      by Alistair Ryder
      A Cambridge academic has proposed a radical new way to solve climate change – letting humanity become extinct.
      Patricia MacCormack, a professor of continental philosophy at Anglia Ruskin University, has just released her new book The Ahuman Manifesto, which will officially be launched in Cambridge today (Wednesday, February 5).
      The book argues that due to the damage done to other living creatures on Earth, we should start gradually phasing out reproduction. But rather than offering a bleak look at the future of humanity, it has generated discussion due to its joyful and optimistic tone, as it sets out a positive view for the future of Earth – without mankind…

      Do1thing
      The people of Cambridgeshire are all facing the critical issue of climate change, and we want to do something about it.
      CambridgeshireLive is asking you, our loyal readers, to #Do1Thing to help the environment this year.
      We don’t expect you to make colossal changes to your life, but this list of 50 ideas will make a massive difference to our future if we work collectively…

      Speaking to CambridgeshireLive, Professor MacCormack outlined how she came to this point of view, and how these ideas are not as provocative as they may initially sound…READ ON
      https://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/cambridge-news/cambridge-professor-thinks-should-human-17684215

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    • #
      yarpos

      Like most things in “renewable”/green world, at scale they are useless and potentially damaging.

      For hobbyists and serious off griders to tinker with , great feel good fun.

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    • #
      BoyfromTottenham

      Soldier – well, just use a smaller battery and limit the plane to short trips!

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      Peter C

      Battery Powered airliner will never happen. And even if a miraculous battery with enormous storage capacity, rapid charge times and no risk of fires could be developed there would still need to be nuclear power stations to charge them up.

      But why worry about land based nuclear charging. A better strategy is onboard nuclear power.
      The concept was examined in the 1950’s.
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear-powered_aircraft

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      • #
        Chad

        Interesting article peter,
        I knew the USA worked on the concept, but never knew the USSR actually flew a prototype !
        However this comment summarises it nicely..

        The Soviet program of nuclear aircraft development resulted in the experimental Tupolev Tu-119, …….
        …r. It had two conventional turboprop engines and two direct-cycle nuclear jet engines, …..
        ……..and got around the shielding weight issue by simply not including it.

        According to a letter from test pilot E.A. Guryenov to Scottish Journalist George Kerevan:
        “We had all been irradiated, but we ignored it. Of the two crews, only three men survived- a young navigator, a military navigator and me. The first to go, a young technician, took only three years to die

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    pat

    another scandal that’s brewing. cancel the contract:

    13 Feb: CollieMail: Morrison sustains submarine friendly fire
    by Daniel McCulloch
    Prime Minister Scott Morrison has sustained some friendly fire over the promise of South Australian submarine jobs.
    Liberal premier Steven Marshall fired a warning shot across the bow on Thursday, after the French company in charge of building the new vessels appeared to water down its commitment to local jobs.

    “The Naval Group and the federal government made a commitment that this would be a local build and we will be holding them to account for that commitment,” Mr Marshall told reporters in Adelaide.
    The Australian newspaper reported Naval Group was winding back its commitment to local firms getting 50 per cent of the work.
    Chief executive John Davis said the company didn’t initially have a good understanding of the Australian market…

    Defence Industry Minister Melissa Price was later asked in parliamentary question time what percentage of Australian content was part of the contract.
    “The actual proportion of Australian content on the submarines will be determined as the design of the submarines is completed,” she said.
    The Defence Department and Naval Group said in a joint statement “maximising Australian industry involvement” through all phases of the Attack Class submarine program were “contracted objectives”…

    Australia is building the submarines to update its ageing fleet at an estimated cost of $80 billion.
    The first of the Attack Class submarines is scheduled for delivery in 2032.
    https://www.colliemail.com.au/story/6629327/morrison-sustains-submarine-friendly-fire/?cs=9397

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      pat

      Bolt Report/Sky on the submarines, including interview with Defense expert, Clive Williams. the real cost – which I’ve posted previously – for the 12 French diesel subs is $225 billion, not $80 billion. last of the subs wouldn’t arrive for something like 35 years.

      Williams said govt should cancel the contract. buy 2 or 4 of the latest Virginia class nuclear subs at $4 billion each, with delivery in about 5 years. said we have trouble raising crew for four subs now, and it won’t get easier. said forget about Australian jobs.

      it’s such a scandal, yet no party, incl Labor, is calling for the contract to be scrapped.

      29 Nov 2019: SMH: Submarine fleet tipped to cost $225b to build and maintain
      by By Anthony Galloway
      Australia’s new fleet of attack submarines is now estimated to cost about $225 billion to build and maintain, according to Defence officials…
      The head of the Navy’s submarine program, Greg Sammut, told a Senate estimates hearing on Friday the “out-turn cost” – the actual cost of the build calculated at the end of the project – was now estimated to be at least $80 billion.
      This was on top of the cost to “sustain, update and upgrade” the submarines until 2080, which was estimated to total $145 billion when adjusted for inflation…
      https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/submarine-fleet-tipped-to-cost-225b-to-build-and-maintain-20191129-p53fds.html

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      WXcycles

      The first of the Attack Class submarines is scheduled for delivery in 2032.

      Yeah, translated this means, in ~2038 it finally reaches a tentative initial operational capability, but is recalled to the manufacturer due to serious and very expensive issues, lots of legal wrangles, several major reviews, two def-Mins later it finally gets back into the water in late 2042 and reaches full operational capability about 12 years after scheduled delivery, and costs 3.2 times more than budgeted, so the total order is reduced from 12 to 9 subs, which is then further reduced to 6 when it is realized they are operationally obsolete without major high risk expensive upgrades, and people won’t sign up to sail on them, and the Navy has to cough up double the pay level to to get enough people to crew 4 of them on a sustainable basis.

      After life-extending and upgrading 4 Collins Class for another 25 years, @ $37.2 billion bucks.

      We pay $112 billion dollars for 4 ineffective submarines in 2051.

      Canberra and Naval Group defense capability planning at its very best.

      Chris Pyne says, “Hi everyone, wish you were here!”.

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      • #
        william x

        WX..

        At an estimated cost of $80 billion… for diesel powered submarines, I thought we were going carbon neutral by 2050.

        Nuclear is out of the question, due to policies of successive Australian Governments. We are committed to go green in the future, I would love to see how they engineer a wind turbine/solar powered Submarine.

        And if the world is ending due to climate change in 12 years, why are we bothering to build a fossil fueled submarine that will be delivered in 15 to 20 years time?

        Strange times we live in.

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          WXcycles

          If we could licence-build $80 billion worth US nuke subs we’d have one of the best sub fleets anywhere, and they would be in service 20 years earlier. And be able to retire Collins sooner.

          We’re nuts.

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            Terry

            Exactly. Acquiring nuke boats and the associated skills to maintain and operate them makes economic sense but is also a strategic imperative for Australia. We need the speed to cover our sparse geography and the certainty of fuel supply that nukes bring. Time for us to grow up on these matters.

            I’d go Virginia’s if the Yanks would let us have them (not a certainty given our a little-too-cozy relationship with the Commies amongst operatives in our “major” parties – they might not be happy with that risk).

            Why on earth would you deploy boats that are a day late and a dollar short, propelled by a fuel source over which we hold far too few strategic reserves – the same that is at most risk should any incident arise?

            The ‘Chris Pyne’ “Pork-barrel” Class of never-to-be-deployed toy submarines must be scrapped immediately, along with anyone associated that thought it was ever a good idea (card marked: “NEVER to be re-employed”).

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            • #
              WXcycles

              The ‘Chris Pyne’ “Pork-barrel” Class of never-to-be-deployed toy submarines must be scrapped immediately, along with anyone associated that thought it was ever a good idea (card marked: “NEVER to be re-employed”).

              Agree, they’ve got to go, they’re the wrong people, and there is no redeeming them.

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    pat

    22m29s to 30m52s: segment on Roger Stone trial/prosecutors resigning, with Alan Dershowitz & Devin Nunes:

    Youtube: Sean Hannity 2/12/20 | Fox News
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h95bzxHjLyE

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    skeptikal

    Looks like China has changed the way it’s counting Coronavirus cases… their total has jumped dramatically with nearly 15000 new cases reported today.

    https://www.businessinsider.com.au/china-hubei-province-nearly-15000-new-coronavirus-cases-2020-2?r=US&IR=T

    My guess is that they needed to increase the number of cases to balance out the surge in deaths, or the death rate as a percentage of cases would look too alarming.

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    pat

    reports some facts, then gets silly:

    11 Feb: Forbes: Global Warming Threatens Luxury Lifestyles Of The Rich
    by Ollie Williams
    Take private jets, on which any multimillionaire worth their wealth hops from Davos to Dubai. Despite “flygskam,” the new Swedish word coined for flight shaming frequent flyers, deliveries of new private jets are expected to rise 9% this year according to a report from Honeywell International.

    Deliveries are also expected of a further 800 superyachts this year, as the 5,000 strong fleet of these 24+ meter ships grows around the world. Each of these burns an average of 500 litres (110 gallons) of fuel an hour, according to Towergate Insurance.

    And, if last year’s sales of sports utility vehicles (SUVs) and supercars are anything to go by, deliveries of these will increase as well. In the U.K., high-emission SUVs now outsell electric cars by 37 to one the UK Energy Research Centre found…

    Just 10% of mass luxury consumers surveyed by Lucid for brand agency Sunshine strongly agreed with the statement “when it comes to luxury goods, it is vital that products are made in a sustainable way.”

    A flash poll of half a dozen multimillionaires in London for this article yielded a flat 0%, though one did note he might buy “fewer expensive cars” this year as he didn’t really need another supercar cluttering up his driveway…

    Just 10% of mass luxury consumers surveyed by Lucid for brand agency Sunshine strongly agreed with the statement “when it comes to luxury goods, it is vital that products are made in a sustainable way.”

    A flash poll of half a dozen multimillionaires in London for this article yielded a flat 0%, though one did note he might buy “fewer expensive cars” this year as he didn’t really need another supercar cluttering up his driveway…

    Climate change could kill luxury…READ ON
    https://www.forbes.com/sites/oliverwilliams1/2020/02/11/global-warming-threatens-luxury-lifestyles-of-the-rich/#3bd010a56db7

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      pat

      11 Feb: WND: Pew survey: U.S. voters put ‘climate change’ at bottom of priority list
      Ranks 17th of 18 issues facing the country
      by WND staff
      That result is consistent with Pew polls since 2007, when “global warming” was added to a list of priorities voters were asked to assess. In 2016, when the language was changed to “climate change,” the issue was ranked third to last. In most years it’s been second to last and in some at the very bottom.

      This year, only “global trade” was ranked lower than “climate change.”…

      In an article published by the Climate Depot website (LINK), Donna Laframboise noted Gallup has conducted a poll every month that asks people to name the most important problem facing the country, and climate change has been conspicuously missing for the two decades the poll has been conducted…

      The survey was conducted Jan. 9-14 among 1,505 adults.
      The list…READ ON
      https://www.wnd.com/2020/02/pew-survey-u-s-voters-put-climate-change-bottom-priority-list/

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    robert rosicka

    I’m seeing reports of dams in south east Queensland mysteriously not filling up after some big rainfall totals .
    Checked one which is Atkinson dam and after 115mm I have to wonder what is going on here and it’s not the only one .

    https://www.seqwater.com.au/dams/atkinson

    https://www.eldersweather.com.au/qld/southeast-coast/atkinsons-dam

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    Ian1946

    I am at a loss to understand how supposedly intelligent people can support the ALP/Greens coalition. I can only assume that either they support the destruction of Australia as we know it or they are stupid beyond belief. I presume that most of them are either Federal/State or Local government employees and are divorced from the real world in that they are not held to account for anything.

    Donald Trump has the right ides IMHO where is our Donald

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    • #
      hatband

      Labor always talks a good game in Opposition, then fails to deliver in Government.
      Rudd and Swan’s idea of spending into the economy was sound, but the Technocratic Solution of spending on useless School Halls rather than Infrastructure Projects was shortsighted and wasteful.
      Was talking to a Labor bloke the other day about the Brisbane City Council Elections [March 31], and I suggested that the Council Bus timetables are stuck in the 1950s, when Blue Collar workers started at 7.30a.m., white Collar at 8 a.m., and Banks and Professional at 9 a.m..
      These days, Blue Collar starts at 6.30 a.m., earlier if shiftwork, but the Council Buses don’t cater for those times at all.
      Anyway, all the bloke wanted to talk about was how 24 hour buses didn’t work because people felt unsafe.
      In other words, it’s all or nothing with these people, whether it’s Climate Policy, local transport, whatever.
      On some level, they’re just irrational, and reason can’t change that.

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    pat

    13 Feb: Fox News: Roger Stone jury foreperson’s anti-Trump social media posts surface after she defends DOJ prosecutors
    by Gregg Re; Fox News’ Jake Gibson and Alex Pfeiffer contributed to this report.
    VIDEO: 4m45s: Tucker Carlson on Roger Stone’s prison sentencing
    Former Memphis City Schools Board President Tomeka Hart revealed Wednesday that she was the foreperson of the jury that convicted former Trump adviser Roger Stone on obstruction charges last year — and soon afterward, her history of Democratic activism and a string of her anti-Trump, left-wing social media posts came to light.

    Hart even posted specifically about the Stone case before she voted to convict, as she retweeted an argument mocking those who considered Stone’s dramatic arrest in a predawn raid by a federal tactical team to be excessive force. She also suggested President Trump and his supporters are racist and praised the investigation conducted by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, which ultimately led to Stone’s prosecution.

    Meanwhile, it emerged that U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson had denied a defense request to strike a potential juror who was Obama-era press official with admitted anti-Trump views — and whose husband worked at the same Justice Department division that handled the probe leading to Stone’s arrest. And, another Stone juror, Seth Cousins, donated to former Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke and other progressive causes, federal election records reviewed by Fox News show…

    Independent journalist Mike Cernovich, not CNN, then first reported that a slew of Hart’s other publicly available Twitter and Facebook posts readily suggested a strong political bias. Some of Hart’s posts were written as Stone’s trial was in progress.
    Hart, who unsuccessfully ran for Congress as a Democrat in 2012, quoted someone in an August 2017 tweet referring to Trump as a member of the KKK…

    (Judge Amy Berman) Jackson, who was appointed to the bench by President Barack Obama, also took a shot at Stone’s team for failing to uncover the information sooner…

    Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Trump said he stayed out of internal DOJ deliberations, but strongly opposed their initial sentencing recommendation…
    Later, Trump took a shot at Jackson, writing on Twitter: “Is this the Judge that put Paul Manafort in SOLITARY CONFINEMENT, something that not even mobster Al Capone had to endure? How did she treat Crooked Hillary Clinton? Just asking!”
    https://www.foxnews.com/politics/roger-stone-juror-justice-department-anti-trump-social-media

    13 Feb: Fox News: Tom Fitton (Judicial Watch): Mueller-linked prosecutors targeting Roger Stone to ‘vindicate the Mueller scam’
    by Charles Creitz
    VIDEO: 2m55s Fitton on Tucker Carlson
    Fitton also noted that two of the four prosecutors who withdrew from the Stone case — Aaron Zelinsky and Jonathan Kravis — after the Justice Department filed for a reduced sentence are linked to the Mueller investigation…
    https://www.foxnews.com/media/tom-fitton-roger-stone-mueller-investigation

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      hatband

      Out of 350 million people, these sort of jurors turn up by chance?
      I’m more likely to pick 6 Lotto numbers tomorrow night.
      If the whole thing is legit, which I doubt, then Roger Stone’s lawyers didn’t do much of a job either challenging potential jurors, or defending him during the Trial.

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    pat

    before this takes off here, more reason to oppose increase in super contributions.

    behind paywall:

    12 Feb: UK Telegraph: Pensions schemes must disclose what they are doing to fight climate change
    By Mark Carney and Therese Coffey (Secretary of State for Work and Pensions)
    The people of Britain, particularly the young, are demanding action on climate change…
    No longer can we sit and watch the devastating impact that climate change is having on our planet. You just need to turn on your television to see the fires in Australia or floods in the north of England…

    open access:

    12 Feb: WSJ: U.K. Moves to Require Pensions to Disclose Climate Change Plans
    By Dieter Holger
    British pension funds may soon need to explain how they are fighting climate change under a global framework as the U.K. aims to reach carbon neutrality by 2050.
    The U.K.’s Department for Work and Pensions said Wednesday that it proposed an amendment to the Pension Schemes Bill that would require pensions to disclose their climate change strategies under the Taskforce on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), a voluntary framework that is widely used by companies. This follows a meeting last week between DWP SecretaryTherese Coffeyand Bank of England GovernorMark Carney.
    “We’ve already introduced regulations that require pension trustees to set out their policy on climate change, but now we’re taking things a step further,” Ms. Coffey said in prepared remarks. “Pension schemes shouldn’t be dragging their heels when it comes to their climate change strategy.”
    U.K. pension funds managed some $2.8 trillion in assets in 2018, according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.

    The TCFD was founded in late 2015 and is chaired by billionaire Michael Bloomberg.Nearly 800 public- and private-sector organizations have supported the TCFD’s work, including financial firms with assets in excess of $118 trillion, Mr. Bloomberg said in the TCFD’s 2019 status report in May. Mr. Bloomberg said businesses reporting climate data for some recommended disclosures rose nearly 15% over a two-year period, according to a review of more than 1,000 companies…READ ON
    https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-k-moves-to-require-pensions-to-disclose-climate-change-plans-11581508142

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    pat

    12 Feb: Belfast Telegraph: PM ‘committed’ to UN climate summit in Glasgow despite London fallback option
    Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has accused Boris Johnson of ‘playing politics’ over COP26.
    By David Hughes, Press Association
    Boris Johnson remains committed to hosting a major UN climate summit in Glasgow, Downing Street said as it emerged a London venue is being lined up as a fallback option.
    The COP26 summit is due to be held in Glasgow in November but the ExCeL Centre in London’s docklands could take its place.
    The potential move comes amid concerns about the cost of the summit…

    The Prime Minister’s press secretary said: “We are committed to holding COP26 in Glasgow but the Scottish Government need to work with us to make sure this is a successful summit which showcases the UK as a world leader in tackling climate changes and represents value for the UK taxpayer.”
    Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon accused the PM of “playing politics with the biggest issue of our time”.

    Asked about the London venue being lined up, the PM’s press secretary added: “It is standard practice to carry out contingency planning for major international events at this stage.”
    There are concerns in Whitehall about whether the estimated costs of policing the event put forward by the Scottish Government are realistic…
    https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/uk/pm-committed-to-un-climate-summit-in-glasgow-despite-london-fallback-option-38951187.html

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      pat

      12 Feb: BBC: COP26: Government insists COP26 summit will be in Glasgow
      The FT reported that the government has “opened talks” with the ExCeL London venue (LINK) as a “fallback option”.
      But the government said it was standard practice to carry out “contingency planning” for major events…

      The conference is due to be held at the Scottish Events Campus between 9 and 19 November, but there have been concerns about spiralling costs amid claims that the UK and Scottish governments have been at loggerheads over planning for the event…

      Speculation that the summit could be moved was first sparked by comments made by former UK energy minister Claire O’Neill after she was sacked from her role as president of the conference.
      Ms O’Neill said she had been told that the government was considering relocating the event to England – but her claim was strenuously denied by Downing Street.
      She has also claimed that Prime Minister Boris Johnson had “heartily and saltily” refused to give Scotland’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, an official role in the summit.
      And she accused the Scottish government of behaving “disgracefully” ahead of the conference, and said the two governments were locked in a “stand-off”.

      The FT reported on Wednesday that it had been told by UK government officials that negotiations had started with the ExCeL London venue in the east of the city as a possible “fallback”…

      About 30,000 people, including some 200 world leaders, are expected to attend COP26, with Police Scotland warning that the cost of providing security could be more than £200m – partly because the force will need to bring in officers from elsewhere in the UK to help…

      Meanwhile, Mr Gove – who has been tipped to replace Ms O’Neill as the president of the summit – said the UK had a moral responsibility to lead on climate change…
      https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-51477130

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    pat

    when will Australia get on with building some coal-fired power stations? and get out of Paris:

    13 Feb: Guardian: EU accused of climate crisis hypocrisy after backing 32 gas projects
    MEPs support €29bn schemes, ‘locking Europe into burning fossil fuels for generations’
    by Daniel Boffey in Brussels
    The EU has given its formal backing to 32 major gas infrastructure projects in a move critics say will lock Europe into burning fossil fuels for generations.
    MEPs voted to support the European commission’s proposal by 443 votes to 169 on Wednesday, with 36 abstentions, provoking environmental groups to lament Brussels’ “hypocrisy” over the climate emergency.

    The total cost of the infrastructure is estimated to be €29bn. Under the EU’s funding programme up to 50% of the costs of each project could be covered by European taxpayers…

    Colin Roche, climate justice coordinator for Friends of the Earth Europe, said: “This climate hypocrisy has to end. Following unprecedented disasters like Australia’s wildfires, history will look unkindly on those who today backed building more fossil fuel pipelines and terminals.
    “A European green deal is not possible with more fossil fuels, and Europe needs to go fossil-free fast.”…

    Ciarán Cuffe, an Irish MEP from the Green party, who voted against the projects, said: “Given the severity of the climate emergency and the little time we have left to avert climate catastrophe, it is wrong to spend more public money on fossil fuel investments…READ ON
    https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/feb/12/eu-accused-of-climate-crisis-hypocrisy-after-backing-32-gas-projects

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    robert rosicka

    Just watching Paul Murray on sky and he has a new segment called where did your power come from today .
    Coal gets a big nod .

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    pat

    12 Feb: Fox News: Trump doubles Obama’s 2012 vote total in New Hampshire, signaling fired up base
    by Tyler Olson; Fox News Gregg Re and Paul Steinhauser, as well as the Associated Press contributed to this report
    President Trump didn’t have a serious challenger in the New Hampshire primary, but he still turned out enough voters to more than double former President Barack Obama’s 2012 vote total in the state, indicating that the Republican base is all-in on Trump as he prepares to face the eventual Democratic nominee in a reelection battle this November…
    With 87 percent of precincts reporting, Trump secured more than 120,000 votes in the Granite State. In 2012, Obama managed just 49,080 total votes in New Hampshire. The gap between the two presidents is likely to increase as more precincts report their totals Wednesday (100% REPORTING 129,696)…

    It also dwarfs the total of other incumbent presidents: then-President George W. Bush received 53,962 votes in the largely-uncontested GOP primary in New Hampshire in 2004. And in 1996, incumbent President Bill Clinton received 76,797 votes in New Hampshire’s primary…

    Trump himself revved up his supporters at a packed and fiery rally in Manchester, N.H., on Monday, the eve of the state’s primary.
    “Nine months from now, we are going to retake the House of Representatives, we are going to hold the Senate, and we are going to keep the White House,” Trump said to thunderous applause. “We have so much more enthusiasm, it’s not even close. They’re all fighting each other.”…

    The Trump campaign also touted a record turnout for an incumbent in the Iowa caucuses, which came on the same night that Democratic turnout fell well below expectations…
    https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-doubles-obamas-2012-vote-total-in-new-hampshire-signaling-fired-up-base

    12 Feb: Gallup: More in U.S. Say They Are Better Off Than in Past Elections
    by Jeffrey M. Jones
    •61% say they are better off than three years ago
    •No more than 50% have said this in past election cycles
    WASHINGTON, D.C. — Sixty-one percent of Americans say they are better off than they were three years ago, a higher percentage than in prior election years when an incumbent president was running. In the 1992, 1996 and 2004 election cycles, exactly half said they were better off. In three separate measures during the 2012 election cycle, an average of 45% said they were better off…
    https://news.gallup.com/poll/285593/say-better-off-past-elections.aspx?utm_source=alert&utm_medium=email&utm_content=morelink&utm_campaign=syndication

    11 Feb: WND: Pew survey: U.S. voters put ‘climate change’ at bottom of priority list
    Ranks 17th of 18 issues facing the country
    by WND staff
    That result is consistent with Pew polls since 2007, when “global warming” was added to a list of priorities voters were asked to assess. In 2016, when the language was changed to “climate change,” the issue was ranked third to last. In most years it’s been second to last and in some at the very bottom.

    This year, only “global trade” was ranked lower than “climate change.”…

    In an article published by the Climate Depot website (LINK), Donna Laframboise noted Gallup has conducted a poll every month that asks people to name the most important problem facing the country, and climate change has been conspicuously missing for the two decades the poll has been conducted…
    The survey was conducted Jan. 9-14 among 1,505 adults.
    The list…READ ON
    https://www.wnd.com/2020/02/pew-survey-u-s-voters-put-climate-change-bottom-priority-list/

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    pat

    10 Feb: GatewayPundit: Trump Overflow Crowd So Huge It Has Its Own Overflow Crowd at New Hampshire Rally (Photos, Video)
    by Kristinn Tayor
    President Trump held a huge campaign rally at a jam-packed 12,000 seat SNHU arena in Manchester, New Hampshire Monday night on the eve of that state’s first in the nation presidential primary. Supporters started lining up in the cold and rain two days in advance, with several thousand remaining outside to watch the rally on a Jumbotron after the doors were locked when the venue hit full capacity. Amazingly, there was an overflow crowd of hundreds apart from the overflow crowd of thousands outside the arena that gathered way across the street to view and hear the Trump rally on the Jumbotron from a distance…

    And campaign manager Brad Parscale with the numbers from the rally: 52,559 Tickets, 24,732 Voters Identified (41% From NH), 17% Didn’t Vote in 2016, ***25.4% Democrats…
    https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2020/02/trump-overflow-crowd-so-huge-it-has-its-own-overflow-crowd-at-new-hampshire-rally-photos-video/

    bizarrely, some HateTrump MSM have been “softening”!

    10 Feb: GatewayPundit: Liberal Media in Awe Over Trump’s Massive NH Rally, ‘Far Bigger Crowd Tonight For Trump Compared to Dem Rally on Saturday Night’ (VIDEO)
    by Cristina Laila
    Liberal ABC News reporter Jonathan Karl was at President Trump’s massive rally in New Hampshire Monday night and said Trump supporters are fired up.
    “Trump supporters are as fired up as I have ever seen them,” Jon Karl said.

    He continued, “This rally is in an arena that I was at just two nights ago — Saturday night at an event that included ALL of the major Democrat candidates and we have a bigger crowd by far just for Donald Trump than we had on Saturday for all of the Democrats.”
    “Trump supporters are very energized — you got the impeachment acquittal, good news on the economy and Democrats coming out of Iowa seem to be in disarray…and by the way, Trump’s approval rating has hit its highest level ever,” he added…

    Jonathan Karl told Clinton-ite and Democrat operative George Stephanopoulos on Sunday that the Democrat party does not look energized…

    This is the same arena in Manchester that President Trump packed to the brim tonight with cheering supporters and many more in the overflow — even the overflow had an overflow!
    https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2020/02/liberal-media-in-awe-over-trumps-massive-nh-rally-far-bigger-crowd-tonight-for-trump-compared-to-dem-rally-on-saturday-night-video/

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    pat

    open access. definitely something going on in some of the FakeNewsMSM!

    10 Feb: NYT Op-ed: What a Trump Rally Looks Like From the Inside
    The president was in New Hampshire too, and so were his admirers.
    by Devi Lockwood
    MANCHESTER, N.H. — President Trump spoke for an hour to an enthusiastic crowd of more than 11,000 at the Southern Hampshire University Arena on Monday night under banners that read “Promises Made” and “Promises Kept.”…
    For some attendees, this was their first Trump rally. Shane Stocker, a 45-year-old jet engine maker for G.E. Aviation from Lebanon, N.H., waited in line for an hour.

    “I do think he’s one of the best presidents we’ve had in a while,” he said, citing tax cuts, loosening regulation and “lots more jobs.”
    Mr. Stocker voted for Trump in 2016. “After the job Obama was doing, we needed a different direction,” he said. “He was breaking the law left and right and nobody was paying attention to it.”
    “With Trump you don’t have to worry about it,” Mr. Stocker added. “He’s the most vetted president in our country’s history. Since he announced he was running for president they’ve been doing nothing but investigating him.”
    The president “is not prim or proper,” he said. “I like that. He doesn’t sugar coat things for people. And if you don’t like it, too bad.”

    José Rojas, a 38-year-old truck driver from Nashua, N.H., arrived in a shirt that read: “My rights don’t end where your feelings begin.”
    “Everybody here, they’re all on the same page,’’ Mr. Rojas said. “It’s good energy.”…

    Pamela Tucker, 56, the vice chairman of New Hampshire Republican Party, came to the rally from Rye. She said that there were still 3,000 people outside who couldn’t get in the doors after 5:45 p.m.
    “I love freedom and liberty and I’m trying to keep that in America,” Ms. Tucker said. “I’m really happy with how the economy is doing.
    “I believe in the individual and he’s helping that,” she added. “The economy is booming and we see it. He is helping people.”…

    Mike Thibodeau, a 53-year-old retired machinist, carpenter, glass blower and warehouse worker from Hartford, Vt., was attending his first rally. “I voted Democrat almost all my life, until Trump,” he said. “Democrats have slowly slid farther and farther left. The left has gone so far left that they’ve lost their minds.’’
    Mr. Thibodeau is not on board with all of Mr. Trump’s policies, but for him this is not crucial.
    “You can’t get change if you keep electing the same people over and over,” he said. “That’s why I voted for him the first time, because he wasn’t a career politician. He’s never had any political power at any level and look at the job he’s doing.”
    “He might be one of the two greatest presidents in my lifetime,” Mr. Thibodeau said, citing Ronald Reagan as the other…

    As he left the stage, Mr. Trump held his hands up to every corner of the hockey arena, turning to applaud his supporters and pump his fists in their direction.
    “We have so much more enthusiasm than them,” Mr. Trump said. “It’s not even close.”
    https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/10/opinion/trump-rally-new-hampshire.html

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    pat

    a Scottish view – ***2 ALTERNATIVE VENUES!

    13 Feb: HeraldScotland: COP 26: War of words over ‘ridiculous’ policing costs for climate summit
    By Michael Settle
    A new war of words has broken out between London and Edinburgh over the prestigious COP26 green summit with fears that Glasgow could lose staging it because of the “ridiculous” over-inflated policing costs for the global event.
    One well-placed source with knowledge of the preparations for the UN-sponsored summit said the UK Government was as recently as last week “actively considering” ***two alternative venues in England…

    But one well-placed source, close to the summit preparations, told The Herald: “The Cabinet Office as of last week was actively considering two English venues for the COP.
    “Even if Nicola starts behaving, the estimated policing costs are off by £100m-plus.”
    Talks are continuing over the policing costs, said to be north of £200m, according to sources…

    But last night a spokeswoman for Roseanna Cunningham, the Environment Secretary, said: “Estimates of policing costs are made by Police Scotland and the SPA on the information available to them from the UK Government, they have not been calculated by the Scottish Government and the First Minister – rightly – has no part in them, so it appears UK Government sources are simply making things up in order to undermine COP26 in Glasgow for which there is huge enthusiasm…
    London and Edinburgh have been arguing over COP26 for months.

    The Scottish Government has been embroiled in a row with the UK Government over use of the Glasgow Science Centre, which it had earmarked for its summit pavilion but which now Whitehall wants as part of the climate change event.
    Downing St forcefully denied a claim that Mr Johnson had referred to the FM as “that bloody wee Jimmy Krankie woman”.

    The FM has derided the focus on such talk, insisting that what should be the primary focus was saving the planet…
    https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/18231158.new-war-words-breaks-london-edinburgh-ridiculous-policing-costs-cop26-summit/

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    WXcycles

    JETSTREAM UPDATE

    All the ‘mega-jet’ (don’t know what else to call them) action is over Eastern North America and the North Atlantic at present.

    This was the situation at Noon today, 402 km/h over Canada.

    https://i.ibb.co/bHwTwLn/402-kmh-Canada-Screenshot-2020-02-13-Windy-as-forecasted.png

    This jet is still strengthening as the next super strong and deep jet to cross the north Atlantic into the Western Europe, over the next 4 days with, high wind, rain, snow and 45 foot waves. This time it may be proceeded by an actual ‘bomb cyclone’ complex, but the jet will not be as strong as the last, but you’d hardly know it.

    It is forecast to reach 437 km/h in the mid-Atlantic @ 30 k ft (i.e. 9,000 ft lower than last week’s 442 km/h peak speed) but again it is weakening as it crosses over Western Europe. But the surface Low NW of Scotland is stronger and closer, as the jet crosses this time, so couples with it better. Have a look:

    https://i.ibb.co/ZV6G4yB/437-kmh-30-k-ft-Screenshot-2020-02-13-Windy-as-forecasted.jpg
    https://i.ibb.co/4Fyc7Xw/433-kmh-34-k-ft-Screenshot-2020-02-13-Windy-as-forecasted-1.jpg

    The jets of Feb 2020 are energy-packed sledges that fortunately are not peaking overland.

    45 ft waves:
    https://i.ibb.co/X27FpYP/45-ft-waves-Screenshot-2020-02-13-Windy-as-forecasted-1.png

    10 day wind:
    https://i.ibb.co/JHB0f61/10-day-cumulative-winds-Screenshot-2020-02-13-Windy-as-forecasted-2.png

    10 day rain:
    https://i.ibb.co/q59DfKK/10-day-cumulative-rain-Screenshot-2020-02-13-Windy-as-forecasted-3.png

    10 day snow:
    https://i.ibb.co/1fb1HVS/10-day-cumulative-snow-Screenshot-2020-02-13-Windy-as-forecasted-4.png

    And after that yet another major-jet looks set to begin forming over north America on the 20th of Feb, which will do much the same thing as the last two but it moves over Scotland and Scandinavia. These deepest jets are beginning to impact surface weather in the Atlantic and Western Europe. The faster they get the deeper they get, and they can actually reach the surface (over a landmass would be bad.).

    https://i.ibb.co/88S2b8M/Jet-after-next-Screenshot-2020-02-13-Windy-as-forecasted.jpg

    However it will be the hotterest-evah in Europe and western Russia, simply because these stronger deeper jets are keeping all of the really cold air to the Russian far east, while pulling in a continuous surge of warmer air from the mid-latitude Atlantic. Thus get ready from more AGW/media stories of *gasp!* ‘planetary doom’ has arrived! “ … They’re here! … ”

    Greta™ will be apoplectic. But it’s due to sinking dry stratosphere which will drive up OLR and lean the planet towards a NET cooling phase. The sea ice is already recovering because the poles are very cold and there has been little polar vortex spill, so really cold air is staying over the water this year We’ll need to give polar bears mittens!

    Oh yeah, almost forgot the associated sinking-stratosphere pron context for this currently active ‘mega-jet’. These mega-jets never occur without a lot of 0.0% relative-humidity air being involved to steepen all weather gradients:

    https://i.ibb.co/9GGJBKs/Sinking-stratosphere-pron-Screenshot-2020-02-13-Windy-as-forecasted.jpg

    Thank goodness ENSO is neutral right now.

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    toorightmate

    We now have an EX TROPICAL CYCLONE way out in the North Tasman Sea which the alarmist weather people are telling us is now destroying the East Coast – which is unadulterated horsesh*t. The TV weather folk can hardly hide their disappointment.
    The centre of this low pressure system is now at 29.5 degrees South (Brisbane is 27.3 degrees South). Maximum winds are 105kph – a bit less than those blowing around the Aleutian Islands and a darn sight less than the wind strength off Nova Scotia at present.
    No doubt this “””Cyclone””” Uesi will be included in the total this year for Australia – despite the fact that it has had SFA effect on Australia.
    Have you noticed that BoM have stopped saying that Australia averages 12 cyclones each year? In fact the average for the past 10 years has been 6 – including Furphys such as Uesi.
    It was back on 4 February when our beloved BoM told us that a cyclone COULD form in the Coral Sea by the end of the week (ie by 8 February).
    Having had an absolute gutful of this pathetic mob of alarmists (BoM), I decided to follow the system.

    Date Time Lat/Long Pressure Max Wind (kph)

    5 1515 14.3/160.2 1001 30
    6 0800 13.9/161.8 1003 28
    6 2200 13.8/161.7 1002 31
    7 0800 13.1/162.8 1003 45
    8 0800 13.5/164.3 1003 48
    8 2200 14.4/164.0 1000 48
    Let’s not forget it COULD form into a cyclone by this stage!!!
    9 0830 15.3/163.2 998 68
    It was now designated Cyclone Uesi – at 998 and 68kph – what a bloody joke.
    9 1400 15.1/163.0 996 61
    10 0830 16.4/163.1 985 73
    10 1800 17.3/162.8 980 80
    11 0830 18.5/162.6 976 84
    11 1700 19.7/162.3 976 102
    12 0800 22.2/162.5 975 115
    12 1730 23.6/162.1 976 110
    13 0800 26.6/161.5 977 110
    13 1500 28.3/160.7 979 105
    13 2130 29.5/160.1 973 100

    These are the same blunt picks who could not see the Gap storm coming in Brisbane, nor the Toowoomba/Lockyer Valley disaster. They are not fit to mow your lawn. They are pathetic.
    And – if this hurts anyone’s feelings – GOOD.
    How can people in responsible positions be exempt from the law for gross incompetency?

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    pat

    worth reading all:

    12 Feb: Townhall: EXCLUSIVE: What Happened In the Roger Stone Case? ‘Prosecutorial Misconduct’ Says Defense Lawyer
    by Marina Medvin
    I went to federal trial attorney Jesse Binnall for some answers. Binnall defends high-profile clients against political witch-hunts and has defended cases brought by Jonathan Kravis in the past. Currently, Binnall is defending Michael Flynn alongside Sidney Powell…

    Binnall: “Roger Stone wouldn’t ever have been a target of prosecution had he not been a Trump supporter. The President was absolutely right; the political underpinnings of this case are very disturbing. The events of the past few days show just how unusual this case really is.”…
    “These four prosecutors filed a brief making a sentencing recommendation ***without getting approval from the chain of command. That is extraordinarily unusual in the DOJ. In fact, I can say it’s unheard of at the DOJ; certainly, I’ve never heard of it. In practice, DOJ lawyers almost always get approval for everything they do.”…

    “I think they knew exactly what was going to happen when they filed that sentencing recommendation, expecting they will be reined in for doing so. They could then play the role of martyrs by resigning from the case, with one of them resigning entirely from his job.

    “One of the most serious powers of a prosecutor is asking to deprive a defendant of freedom, requesting jail time. I think this [nine-year sentence] was an abuse of their power as prosecutors, to make a recommendation like this without making a departmental approval.”…READ ALL
    https://townhall.com/columnists/marinamedvin/2020/02/12/exclusive-what-happened-in-the-roger-stone-case-prosecutorial-misconduct-says-defense-lawyer-n2561231

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    The Depraved and MOST Deplorable Vlad the Impaler

    Greetings, and respectful Regards to all JoNovians:

    I try to get here every day, but do not always make it. But, I am concerned, as it seems that our beloved Ruairi is posting less than he (she?) use to. Those limericks were almost always the high point of my day, so if anyone has some information to assuage my concern, it would be most appreciated.

    And, I know we’ve all been concerned about good ol’ Rereke, and I saw some posts here in the recent past, but once again, there’s been a gap.

    Hoping for the best, I remain everyone’s humble servant,

    Deplorable Vlad
    A Deplorable Wyomingite

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    • #
      Annie

      Dear Deplorable Vlad, Greetings from DownUnder.
      Ruairi certainly posted on the 31st January and possibly since then. I look out for his limericks; he’s brilliant and I’d love to see a collection of his best published in a book.

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        Peter C

        Well you could easily collect Ruari’s verses, just by going back through all the old posts and copying them.

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    • #
      Annie

      My mind is utterly boggled at the stupidity of all that! I read a fair bit of it and then gave up. Which ‘mastermind’ thinks up such a crazy way to get all the subsidies for wind and solar?

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    Graeme Bird

    A really good intellectual exercise would be to compare the heat retention implications for two different columns of air. The first is a column of water vapour saturated air, but without clouds. The second column of air is also water vapour saturated, and without clouds. But in the second column of air, the latent heat of evaporation is never latent. In the second column of air the latent heat is always 100% manifest in temperature.

    What would that do to the heat retention capabilities of water vapour saturated column of air? I think it would decimate it. Because the temperature might be 30 degrees higher. Which would cause the heat to rise. Plus the direction of thermal energy would change and the loss of thermal energy from the column would intsensify.

    So anyone who is taking this heat retention, and just reflexively saying “greenhouse effect” …. thats got to be looked at.

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    Robdel

    Thebook of revelations.

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    el gordo

    McCormack to resign as Nats leader.

    00