Passionate about fostering a prosperous, climate-friendly future for all. Thoughts on climate, clean energy and related issues at GetEnergySmartNow.com
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Whether or not these people are actual foreign agents is almost irrelevant. Their actions are observationally equivalent to & indistinguishable from the actions actual foreign agents would be taking. The consequences of our total Article I constitutional crisis, right here:
Never forget, a 13-year study found that protected bike-lanes led to a drastic decline in fatalities for all road users. ALL ROAD USERS. And painted bike-lanes? No safety improvement at all. For sharrows, it’s actually safer to NOT have them. Via @usa.streetsblog.org @nyc.streetsblog.org
The more kids are invited to bike, walk and take public transit to school, the safer, healthier and smarter it is for EVERYONE. It’s shocking how much vehicle congestion in cities is actually “driven” by trips to and from schools. #BackToSchool #LetKidsBike #LetKidsWalk cartoon by Yehuda Moon
Bike lanes allow regular stop n shop by people who live a short-median distance away as well as commuters on their way home. Street parking is for irregular distant suburban tourists. During rush hour their parking is restricted. So no buying/dining on the way home from work.
wow that's a 25% increase in days above 80F in this century
jfc
In all seriousness, DOGE has already and will COST us (U.S.) far, far more than the accounting says. Let’s just talk all the lawsuits over Big Balls’ dicking around social security data.
We had to take Broad to task not once, but twice, at #RealClimate, for promoting climate science misinformation on the pages of the New York Times: www.realclimate.org/index.php/ar... www.realclimate.org/index.php/ar...
As @peterhotezmdphd.bsky.social & I document in great detail in #ScienceUnderSiege (due out 9/9: www.barnesandnoble.com/w/science-un...), the New York Times is very much implicated in the false balance and "performative neutrality" that has enabled this moment. Here's a brief excerpt from the book:
If you say 'heteronormative' or 'unhoused person' or 'food insecurity' you're basically talking gibberish and nobody can understand you but if you say you can see inflammation in children at the airport and that vaccines lower IQ or that germs are a myth you get to fire all the scientists.
China plans to ADD 358 gigawatts of solar this year. In the first half of year it installed 212 GW, while the US installed 12 GW (that's not a typo). US solar cumulatively is now at 251 GW while China is at 800 GW, which is more than half of US electricity generation capacity from ALL sources.
Simple question … How can Noem lie with a straight face? Easy — though long — multipart answer: bsky.app/profile/asie...
Far too few D politicians are capable at doing this … as professionals, they should be … bsky.app/profile/asie...
More social and economic equity -
She (and most talking heads) aren’t reading / thinking truth about Trump 2.0 bsky.app/profile/seth...
Raddatz doesn’t seem to have any self-awareness in parroting Trump truthiness, deceit, and lies as it is truth. Deploying troops “to back up local law enforcement” is, at most, a fig leaf for imposing fascism
"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." - Ben Franklin
Hoe can Noem lie so egregiously w:a straight face? - Republican superpower: shameless hypocrisy - true ignorance - devotion to Supreme Leader Trump before the national - cynicism - criminally ignoring Oath Of Office - Fascist to the core - Plastic Surgery Correct answer: all of the above
Aaron watches stuff that would make my eyes bleed. Support!
Pritzker: "National Guard troops, any kind of troops, on the streets of American city don't belong unless there is an insurrection, unless there is truly an emergency. There is not."
Pritzker on Trump sending troops into cities: "He has other aims other than fighting crime... he would like to stop the elections in 2026 or frankly take control of those elections. He'll just claim there's some problem with an election and then he's got troops on the ground that can take control."
Pritzker on Trump's authoritarian takeover: "The playbook is the same. It's thwart the media. It's create mayhem that requires military interdiction. These are things that happen throughout history and Donald Trump is just following that playbook."
Russ Vought said he wanted civil servants “traumatically affected” and to lose the will to work. Now Rubio puts him in charge of closing out USAID. This is not reform. It is the final nail in the coffin of American generosity and America’s standing in the world.
"An early test for Mamdani came after a mass shooting inside a Manhattan office building that left 5 people dead including an off-duty police officer who was working security in the lobby of the building." Has CNN gotten the memo that Mamdani is not actually the Mayor of NYC?
And yeah, probably a big one is grasping at straws in search of something, anything to feel not terrible about. With that caveat: 1) the behavior of the U.S. government right now is forging an alliance between China and the EU, the two governments most actively pursuing energy transition.
Useful frame for understanding Trumpism from @aselrod.bsky.social: "It’s not merely rule by the worst but an active assault on virtue wherever it exists. Trump/MAGA have turned the country over to the cruelest, most rapacious, and least honorable among us." www.liberalcurrents.com/let-it-burn-...
Powerful, painful, and on point. Thank you for highlighting
Dictator Supreme Leader fuhrer Take your pick www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
What in the ever loving fuck is going on here
Question: Why did US put big tariffs on India despite major national interest in cultivating a strategic counterweight to China and trying to isolate Russia? Answer: Because the US president lied that he fixed India-Pakistan and India wouldn’t go along with the lie. (Seriously, that’s the answer)
The US brought in nearly $30 Billion in tariffs in July, triple the amount collected in previous years That's not good news Tariffs are taxes on Americans That $30B was collected from you and me when we bought food, clothes, electronics...
This is the most compelling case I’ve seen yet that America is no longer a democracy but an authoritarian state. Not a *soon-to-be* authoritarian state—a *current* one.
The consistent soft-selling of climate catastrophe makes science itself an existential threat. Antarctica’s collapse isn’t “difficult to stop”—it’s unstoppable. Pretending otherwise isn’t science; it’s denial. www.cbsnews.com/news/abrupt-...
From voting rights to equal protection under the law, Virginians deserve an Attorney General who will fight for justice and fairness – not play politics. I’ll always defend Virginians’ civil rights.
@nealkatyal.bsky.social: “You’ve got the president who's imposed the largest tax increase on American consumers since 1993 … and he did it without Congress saying one word. That is not our constitutional structure.”
Clean energy isn’t “woke.” It’s an essential part of our energy future and saves us all on power bills. This administration’s war on offshore wind and solar is just going to raise Americans’ utilities.
The Republican Death Cult … — let us count the ways - abandoning regulatory enforcement of polluters, etc - cutting funding for assistance programs, like food banks - cutting funding for suicide prevention - prioritization of authoritarian abuse of armed force before public services - ….
Really need the “Jr” as the deceased Attorney General is spinning in his grave at the murderous nature of Jr’s anti-science and anti-humanity crusade
You can ignore climate science at your own peril, but you can't really make it disappear ...
A must read for anyone trying to figure out how to resist the creeping autocracy and wanting to understand how their personal acts of Resistance matter: www.thenation.com/article/acti...
I know there are no silver bullets here, but I think constantly about how our culture of insanely aggressive and thoughtless policing would be upended if federal and state officials were subject to individual liability for their torts instead of being protected by a vast web of immunity doctrines.
Just one more week of early voting in the 9/9 special election in VA11, the seat held by the late, great Rep. @GerryConnolly. Fairfax County turnout at this point just 5.8%. So...make sure you vote for @jameswalkinshaw.bsky.social early by mail/in person or on 9/9! bluevirginia.us/2025/08/satu...
Every time your electricity bill goes up for the next 10 years, it can be traced back to this Administration’s actions. They are making solar and wind power illegal to build in the United States. They are artificially restricting supply while demand is going up.
I vaguely remember tweeting something like the country that effectively captures this free energy source at scale will rule the 21st century. whelp.
"We will continue to track how the Trump administration’s callous policy choices, before and after bouts of extreme weather, exacerbate avoidable suffering and death." - @revolvingdoordc.bsky.social
If Trump and RFK are going to rip the country in half over public health, Dems should polarize the living heck out of this debate on their own terms. Scour the law for as many ways as possible to protect your people from Trump/RFK's reign of mass destruction. newrepublic.com/article/1998...
Blue state health officials can create a group similar to AG's association. Or Govs can jointly release a statement committing to vaccine science. That would be powerful: Blue states collectively standing up for public health while Trump/RFK destroy it. newrepublic.com/article/1998...
This is good: With Trump/RFK destroying CDC, JB Pritzker's officials are exploring the possibility of buying Covid vaccines from manufacturers and distributing them in-state themselves, source tells me. Dem govs must step up and fill the void. New piece from me: newrepublic.com/article/1998...
Oh, I knew you included in mix but was trying to think of WWS “fit”. While typically involving fluids, geothermal isn’t generally “water”. And, as per the sand, many storage options aren’t “wind, water, sun” Question was “how many angels dancing on the head of a pin”, not a fundamental item
“X school had a power outage so all schools are closed “ is such an effective management approach. Do understand that managing / operating a mixed capital infrastructure can be challenging
Oh I was reading “we’re building” and … If there is a/c, no excuse for sending home early …
Unemployment in Virginia has risen every month this year. Trump is hurting our economy through his idiotic tariffs, gutting of the federal workforce, and illegal halting of federal funding. I’ll keep fighting his reckless policies. www.axios.com/local/richmo...
Maybe Kaine’s senators will write a stern letter or Skeet?
Yet another opportunity for a stern letter or Skeet in the face of fascism’s descent on AmeriKKKa? Is there a non Trump owned inspector general? Well past time to STOP referring to you “friends across the aisle”, voting for nominees, and acting to #ShutDownTheSemat!
What will be indoor temperatures when it is 86 outdoors? A “I sweated when I went to elementary school in August” isn’t a good way to look at things.
See: getenergysmartnow.com/2013/09/02/g...
Are they building with heat pumps so there will be a/c? And, designed for greater physical comfort across temperature ranges? Note: building green schools have huge multisolving impacts, including better educational outcomes
What a way to tell America they want more Luigi Mangiones.
World's largest sand battery is now live in Finland 100 MWh heat storage Intermittent WWS electricity heats sand up to 400C. Air sent through pipes in the sand heats up and produces steam for industry and hot water for district heat newatlas.com/energy/large... @christianonre.bsky.social
1. All energy systems have actual environmental problems — but extent of problems differ. Batteries have a fraction of problems than the fossil fuel usage they help displace 2. It isn’t “battery storage” but storage: using hot water tanks for thermal storage; pumped hydropower; …
Is WWS the right acronym or is it W2S2 (water, wind, solar, storage)? Btw, where does geothermal fit w/WWS?
When objectively sensational events are happening daily, all journalists must be sensationalists—attentive to what's happening, the fact that it's sensational, and the fact that the sensational can't be treated as commonplace. Today's nonsensationalist journalists are categorically *underreporting*.
1. Absolutely re US descent into fascism 2. FYI - this has been a shortfall re climate change (and most environmental) challenges for decades
“He” refers to … And, where is that crying? Also, issue is that Schumer’s primary interventions look — on balance — to have cost seats
Plausible case can be made that Schumer mismanagement lost multiple seats in 2016 and lost the electoral college, giving us Trump 1.0 www.dailykos.com/stories/2016...
The DSCC (not on @bluesky?) and @schumer.senate.gov need to S/GOOP: Stay / Get Out Of Primaries For every Schumer primary triumph, there is a failure/disaster. And the funds / resources thrown into primaries aren’t available for general elections. Let the D voters decide, @democrats.org !
"Schumer should accept defeat here. He should stop trying to recruit anyone to run against Platner. He should give everyone in the Democratic coalition a fair and unspoiled test of left-populist appeal." Agreed, @brianbeutler.bsky.social www.offmessage.net/p/graham-pla...
With a BS $5M “wrongful death” payment for what was one of the most clearly justified prominent police shootings in American history. The poloce restraint that day, seeking g to avoid escalation, was extreme. It was an insurrection. Those involved were lucky to escape w/o 100s killed.
I’ve seen a lot of fucked up shit in my day, but this might just take the cake.
Wind and solar are the perfect renewable power pairing in Britain💨 ☀️ 98% of the time, it is either windy or sunny. Particularly windy days are often cloudier, while very sunny days are usually calmer. A match made in… Britain! 🤝 https://loom.ly/-pzxBgQ
If you hate United Healthcare’s abusive treatment of policy holders, look what Trump 2.0 plans to do to Medicare and Medicaid …
What is Johnson’s overall donation profile? And, as if there is any indication that Winsome-Sears will do anything but follow racist Trump’s lead.
So, one random activist holds up a crazy/stupid/racist sign, and Winsome Earle-Sears gets a $500,000 contribution (from Black Entertainment Television co-founder Robert Johnson). Brilliant... bluevirginia.us/2025/08/frid...
"First, everyone, including ordinary citizens, media leaders, and elected officials—especially Republicans—should speak plain truth every time Trump says something as bonkers as 'I have the right to do anything I want to do.' No, Mr. President, you do not:"
However, trade off in areas with high density zoning & expensive real estate?
Three new pieces on data center flex: 1️⃣ @jeffstjohn.bsky.social on Google’s deals www.canarymedia.com/articles/uti... 2️⃣ Shayle Kann w/ Varun Sivaram on mechanics of DC flex www.latitudemedia.com/news/catalys... 3️⃣ Reg dimensions in George Wash. Law Review insideclimatenews.org/news/2808202...
Using selective social media reactions is distorting and not “the left” as opposed to some … And, he seems to ignore “RINO” screaming on the right and MAFA fury against any R politician seemingly deviated from Trump by a millimeter.
Yet again, Yglesias is (mainly false) straw man argument Uber Alles to gain eye balls. Who are these “left” he’s referring to? I am “progressive/left” — heard/saw this sort of “you might as well be a Republican” 10-15-20 years ago. Simply not facing Trump 2.0. His hippie punching is tiring.
RFK Jr. ordered head of CDC to break the law. That's the story and Dems should demand immediate impeachment hearings www.rawstory.com/cdc-firing-i...
Will the Trump regime ban this?
I think we're at the tip of the iceberg for permissionless DERs. Imagine a 1200 W plug in solar, with a few kWh of storage on the same circuit acting as a UPS for your fridge or room AC. Could get interesting.
If Ashli Babbitt's parents really wanted to avenge her death they would, instead of pitifully whitewashing her legacy, be suing Fox News for filling their child's gullible head with dangerous nonsense that directly led to her death.
CDC employees standing up and walking out in light of the mass shootings, firings, and *waves hands in the air* everything else. #USAnotRFK Lets gooooo
Not as disastrously as ICE … which would not be as bad as Big Balls’ DOGE
This country is going to collapse, from sea to sea, and it'll collapse because Ezra Klein was the best our major media could do. Warm skim milk and a stale sugar cookie. And however angry you are about that, it's not angry enough. We let a monster devour our country like it was nothing. *Nothing*.
There was no sense from DC Democrats in the 2024 election that America was in mortal danger. More importantly there was no such sense from major media—including Klein—which did its job so poorly that Americans went to the polls in 2024 more poorly informed than any US electorate in the last century.
It was clear two years ago that Project 2025 and Trump planned to drain all monies from everything but Criminal Justice, Immigration, National Security and the Military, and that those formerly separate pots would in fact be one pot aimed at controlling the American population via government force.
I'm so *livid* at the fact that Dems who read the news and basically everyone in indie media understands that America is speeding toward a collapse of its culture, economy, rule of law, and international influence but but we must *still* be subjected to utter gobshite from mainstream media everyday.
Much of the blame lies at the feet of the media. Not indie media—which has been getting Trump right for about 10 years now—but exactly the sort of mealy-mouthed lukewarm respectability-politics jerkoffs like Klein who've been years behind all of their peers but know how to play major media's games.
Why is President Obama amplifying an Ezra Klein essay in which Klein eliminates from history the fact that hundreds and hundreds of journalists asked Trump during the 2024 presidential campaign if his agenda was Project 2025 and *he lied to every single one of them, and every single American voter*?
first interview I did as a baby journo was w/RFK Jr. about why he opposed Cape Wind (it was because it messed with the views from his family's compound, but he mumbled something about local fishermen). Brown University has done excellent research on this www.climatedevlab.brown.edu/post/against...
hmmm, good public transportation or a new plastics plant? I know what dumbass suicidal capitalism will choose!
India installs 18 GW of solar in H1 2025 www.pv-magazine.com/2025/08/27/i... - very good news from #India for solar PV ... and much more demand ahead www.nature.com/articles/s41...
"Once MAGA brands you as an enemy, your fortunes shift. No amount of strategic silence will change your new identity, so you may as well lean into it." I wrote about why I chose—and keep choosing—to speak up and fight back. wiczipedia.substack.com/p/on-resisti...
Yesterday, HSI and MPD set up a checkpoint on Rhode Island Ave in DC. Neighbors stood on either end, holding signs saying “LA MIGRA ADELATE.” As HSI and MPD started to pack it up, residents told them, “we don’t think you’re good Americans” and “fuck you guys, go home.”
This is not good news. We can't wait for a convenient moment before taking climate action. The time is now. "the tipping point that makes an Amoc shutdown inevitable is likely to be passed within a few decades" www.theguardian.com/environment/...
I was shocked when I first saw these results from standard climate models used in IPCC reports: for high emissions, the Atlantic overturning circulation #AMOC shuts down in all 9 models that ran past 2100, and is well on the way to shutdown by 2100. Our paper on that is out today.🧵
