Complications Are Not Simple

Make America Great Again?
Simple, Right?

The problem is our world is just not that simple.
Why?

Change,
Fast,
Data,
Algorithms… algorithms... more algorithms...
Complicated…

Life has become complicated…

"Never Under Estimate Human Stupidity."

Yuval Noah Harari
Why fascism is so tempting - and how your data could power it

https://www.ted.com/talks/yuval_noah_harari_why_fascism_is_so_tempting_and_how_your_data_could_power_it?utm_source=newsletter_weekly_2018-05-19&utm_campaign=newsletter_weekly&utm_medium=email&utm_content=top_left_button

"In a profound talk about technology and power, author and historian Yuval Noah Harari explains the important difference between fascism and nationalism -- and what the consolidation of our data means for the future of democracy. Appearing as a hologram live from Tel Aviv, Harari warns that the greatest danger that now faces liberal democracy is that the revolution in information technology will make dictatorships more efficient and capable of control. "The enemies of liberal democracy hack our feelings of fear and hate and vanity, and then use these feelings to polarize and destroy," Harari says. "It is the responsibility of all of us to get to know our weaknesses and make sure they don't become weapons." (Followed by a brief conversation with TED curator Chris Anderson)

"This talk was presented at an official TED conference, and was featured by our editors on the home page."

"The most important thing is to liberate ourselves from suffering... understanding what suffering is, what causes it and how to be liberated from it."

Yuval Noah Harari TED Dialogues
Natinalism vs. globalism: the new political divide

https://www.ted.com/talks/yuval_noah_harari_nationalism_vs_globalism_the_new_political_divide

"How do we make sense of today's political divisions? In a wide-ranging conversation full of insight, historian Yuval Harari places our current turmoil in a broader context, against the ongoing disruption of our technology, climate, media -- even our notion of what humanity is for. This is the first of a series of TED Dialogues, seeking a thoughtful response to escalating political divisiveness. Make time (just over an hour) for this fascinating discussion between Harari and TED curator Chris Anderson."

"This talk was presented at an official TED conference, and was featured by our editors on the home page."

To: Great-Great-Great-Grandchildren

Dear great-great-great-granddaughter and great-great-great-grandson:

A brilliant man once explained to me, “You are not here on this earth to accumulate money, fame or power. Nor, are you here to find the love of your life. You are not here to “get” something. No, you are here to contribute that which will uniquely flow through you.”

He continued, “That uniqueness will come to you in time. It will find you. You will not find it.”

“And, when that day comes, accept it. Then do whatever it is that you must do, for it is your gift for those you love and those yet unborn generations to follow.”

Well, that day has arrived.

Now, I know my unique gift for you is to continue the work of my ancestors - your ancestors, too.

They worked unceasingly to provide a secure, loving home. They built that home in a land of opportunity, where the air was clean, the water sweet, and the earth poison-free. Flowers and trees surrounded our home. Birds sang, and a multitude of wildlife flourished nearby.

Hatefulness was forbidden and learning cherished. Our door, always open to new experiences, was still protective against harm.

Outside of home, your ancestors, women and men, served selflessly and heroically out of compassion, in pursuit of happiness and peace for all.

In my time, as in times past, leaders have proven cowards, soullessly sacrificing the future, your world and the helpless, for trillions and trillions of dollars of the public trust. All for personal gain.

I, and many others, struggle day-in and day-out to counter this never-ending ruthlessness of these soulless beings, who have forced us into a last-ditch battle to preserve something of our earth for you.

The fact that you are reading this letter is proof that we have somehow managed to overcome our inadequacies, faults and frailties in the face of unrestrained avarice and unmitigated evil.

My hope is that I have helped to pass to you a secure, loving home in a land of opportunity, where the air is clean, the water sweet, and the earth poison-free. That you, too, enjoy the flowers and trees surrounding your home... that birds sing for you and the wildlife flourishes nearby.

This is the world I hoped for you and the reason I lived.

May God be with you, now and forever. May he give you the strength and wisdom to pass our world on to your great-great-great-grandchildren. Whatever you do, please, Don't Stop Believin'.

Your great-great-great-grandfather, Ron

Legacy Grandkids

Journey - Don't Stop Believin'- 1981

Fossil Fuel Geezers

While much of the known world has, and continues, to develop and implement sustainable energy technology, the good old USA, led by the Trumpists, has retrogressed into the fossil fuel Dark Ages.

Most Americans falsely believe their nation is a technology leader. We are not. We are Fossil Fuel Geezers.

We operate our society on electricity generated by antiquated coal and natural gas, or worse, nuclear-powered generation plants, that are wired together with an “1880 Power Grid” that loses nearly 69% of the electricity generated and distributed to us. (See video below.)

Additionally, the “Grid” is invitingly vulnerable to any “nutcase” or terrorist committed to causing painful mischief, or natural disasters, including floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, solar storm cosmic radiation, etc.

An answer? A bunch of small power plants.

Solar or wind electricity generated by rooftop systems, or a plethora of standalone systems, massive wind farms or massive solar arrays, in many cases joined together in microgrids, is fast becoming the world standard.

Why? Because we have developed a lot of new technology since the 1880s, and it is cost effective.

Please check out: Solar Surprise: Small-Scale Solar a Better Deal than Big, John Farrell, ilsr.org, 9 Mar 2018.

"If you’re a Public Utilities Commission eyeing the least cost solar energy, it’s clear that electric customers benefit regardless of the scale of the solar build, but there’s definitely not a benefit to building bigger than about 10 to 20 megawatts. In other words, you may need to consider different factors, such as who earns the return on investment from the solar project. If solar projects are comparable cost, a Public Utilities Commission ought to favor project development with maximum public economic benefit, as opposed to utility shareholder benefit."

"If you’re a city or community looking to maximize the value of your solar investment, smaller is best. There’s every reason to favor distributed solar because the economic multipliers far outweigh any benefit from building solar bigger. The final chart shows the combination of purchase price less local spending value."

Small is beautiful, wrote E. F. Schumacher, but when it comes to solar,
it’s also an economic smash-hit.

One supposed sticking point I often hear is, "What happens when the sun goes down or the wind stops?"

No doubt you’ve heard about Tesla Powerwall? That is one proven solution.

Under development is another that may be coming your way…

Stanford researchers have developed a water-based battery to store solar and wind energy, Tom Abate, Stanford University, 30 Apr 2018.

“Stanford researchers have developed a water-based battery that could provide a cheap way to store wind or solar energy generated when the sun is shining and wind is blowing so it can be fed back into the electric grid and be redistributed when demand is high.”

Please go here for the whole story.

Tired of being a Fossil Fuel Geezer? I am. (Too, please consider the potential for new, higher-paying jobs that will be created when we switch over.)

"Lost in Transmission": How much energy we lose from plant to plug

"How much energy is lost between the power plant and your house? Inside Energy's Jordan Wirfs-Brock explains."

Check Your Six Shooter, Cowboy

So, Dodge City, Tombstone, Abilene and the others of the Wild West had it right.

“… statistics show that, next to drunk and disorderly conduct, the most common cause of arrest was illegally carrying a firearm. Sheriffs and marshals took gun control seriously.”

“Although some in the gun community insist that more guns equals less crime, in the Wild West they discovered that gun control can work. Gun violence in these towns was far more rare than we commonly imagine. Historians who’ve studied the numbers have determined that frontier towns averaged less than two murders a year. Granted, the population of these towns was small. Nevertheless, these were not places where duels at high noon were commonplace. In fact, they almost never occurred.”*

Back in 1879 all cowboys had to leave their six shooters and Winchesters at the stable at the edge of town or with the sheriff, who then gave ‘em a token to be redeemed upon leaving town.

Oddly, even the NRA has decided guns are not welcome when Vice Pres. Pence is scheduled to speak before the esteemed body this Friday.

I guess, according to the NRA and the Secrete Service, guns aren’t welcome at this particular NRA shindig.**

So why should guns be welcome everywhere else?

Shouldn’t what’s good for the goose be good for the gander?

Better, let’s just follow the Old Western tradition and check the six shooters at the stable or the sheriff’s office.

*Did the Wild West Have More Gun Control Than We Do Today, Adam Winkler, THE BLOG 09/09/2011 03:42 pm ET Updated Nov 09, 2011 

**The NRA said guns will be banned during a Pence speech. Parkland students see hypocrisy,
Alex Horton, msn.com, 30 Apr 2018.

Lyle Lovett - If I Had A Boat - 1987

JFK Cold Case Murder Documents Remain Sealed

In 1992, Congress established a 25-year deadline for releasing all sealed archives pertinent to Pres. John F. Kennedy’s murder in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963. When that deadline arrived — 26 Oct 2017 — Pres. Trump acceded to the CIA / FBI and declared a six-month extension to 26 Apr 2018.

Yesterday, Pres. Trump once again caved to the CIA / FBI. This time extending the deadline by 3 ½ years to 2021.

It is estimated that about, “15,884 records that have now been partially released, some with heavy redactions, will be subject to yet more review over the next three years under Trump's order.”*

Frankly, my guess is that all incriminating records must have been destroyed by now, erasing all traces of evidence leading back to the FBI / CIA’s involvement in Pres. Kennedy’s murder. Still, something must be in the documents or the people in charge of the current FBI / CIA would not be fearful of releasing them — 55 years after the coup d'état and murder of our 35th President.

*Trump keeps some JFK documents sealed until 2021 as Archives release final batch, Todd J. Gillman, Dallas News, 26 Apr 2018.

Coup d'état and murder of our 35th President? Yes. Here is why I believe that is exactly what happened.

President Kennedy’s Murder and Conspiracy

I was attending a junior high school biology class the day President Kennedy was murdered. If you were alive at that time, I’ll bet you remember where you were that day, too.

The nation was in shock the day President Kennedy was shot – well, many of us were, I guess. Since that day in 1963, I’ve learned that a whole lot of people wanted the President dead.

Because of the JFK Records Collection Act, Dr. Joan Mellen explained, “The CIA released thousands of documents, not all about the JFK assassination. I believe the CIA does not know what is included in the documents that they released many of them are about peripheral issues.”

What was released that’s so important? How about Lee Harvey Oswald’s FBI and CIA payroll records?

 “There is no mistaking that Lee Harvey Oswald was connected to CIA, US Customs and the FBI,” said Dr. Joan Mellen. (1. )

(For a more complete interview and discussion, go here for Dr. Mellen's Book TV C-SPAN2 presentation which was aired on 24 Jan 2006, following the first printing of her book, A Farewell to Justice: Jim Garrison, JFK’s Assassination, and the Case That Should Have Changed History.)

https://www.c-span.org/video/?191056-1/a-farewell-justice-jim-garrison-jfks-assassination

“I believe they (CIA) think they are invulnerable. They release a lot of these documents and they have no idea what is in their own documents.”

 

Dr. Joan Mellen

"CIA’s politics are clear: destabilize the governments of countries that are not inclined to do business with U.S. corporations under conditions advantageous to the U.S. This includes destabilizing those who not amendable to the imprecations of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Arm the militias willing to help do the destabilizing. Then kill them when they turn against us. Is Benghazi a surprise?", explained Dr. Mellen. (2.)

 “What I discovered,” she said, “is CIA has the power; the military is their arm; defense contractors are their clients; the government, elected officials are for show.”

In another recent presentation (3.) Dr. Mellen, said, "My belief is that the more we know about who was behind the murder of President Kennedy, the more empowered we are to combat the present assault on the Constitution. The more cogently we can analyze who profited by the death of President Kennedy, and by that I don’t mean the beleaguered Lyndon Johnson, a pawn in the hands of those who put him into office, long-time CIA assets Herman and George Brown, but not only the Browns, but D. H. Byrd, the Klebergs and others, the better able we will be to determine what is to be done. The more we uncover the similarities between the three Texas Presidents, the better equipped we are to reverse the authoritarian direction the government of this country has taken, if it isn’t already too late."

As painful as it is and so very difficult to accept, Dr. Mellen has found the truth for us.

Finally, after all the years of absolute denial about Oswald’s obvious connection to the CIA and FBI, we also now know, without a doubt that the CIA altered the Zapruder film, produced a “doctored” version, and swapped out the original film. This revelation alone negates countless investigations which were based upon the Zapruder film as an indisputable record of the President’s murder. Sadly, it also reveals formerly respected media giant, Time, Inc., an agent of the CIA, and its executive’s role in suppressing evidence. (4.)

Author Douglas P. Horne served on the staff of the Assassination Records Review Board (ARRB) during the last 3 years of its 4-year lifespan, from August 1995-September 1998. He was hired as a Senior Analyst on the Military Records Team and was promoted midway through my tour to the position of Chief Analyst for Military Records.  In addition to working with military records on Cuba and Vietnam, he worked extensively with the JFK medical evidence, and on all issues related to the Zapruder film.

https://www.blacklistednews.com/New_Evidence_of_Massive_Government_Cover_Up_in_the_JFK_Assassination/37249/0/38/38/Y/M.html

Sources
1."New Evidence in JFK Assassination", Dr. Stuart Jeanne Bramhall, Veterans Today, 16 Mar 2014.

https://www.veteranstoday.com/2014/03/16/new-evidence-in-jfk-assassination/

"A revised version of the 2005 edition, the new 647 page A Farewell to Justice is a virtual encyclopedia of the JFK assassination. The book leaves no doubt that high level CIA officials authorized the murder and provides a complete list of the cast of characters who played roles in the assassination and/or cover up."

"The new edition makes use of documents Mellen obtained via her 2011 Freedom of Information (FOIA) lawsuit and personal  interviews with surviving assassination witnesses. The most startling new evidence relates to Robert Kennedy’s systematic efforts to obstruct both the Warren Commission investigation and Jim Garrison’s efforts to identify the real culprits behind his brother’s murder."
also see,"The Kennedy Assassination and the Current Political Moment", Talk at the 92nd Street Y, Joan Mellen, 28 Jan 2007

http://joanmellen.com/wordpress/speeches/the-kennedy-assassination-and-the-current-political-moment/

Also read: Speech delivered by Joan Mellen at the annual meeting of “November In Dallas,” for the JFK Lancer group, November 23, 2013

http://joanmellen.com/wordpress/2013/12/03/speech-delivered-by-joan-mellen-at-the-annual-meeting-of-november-in-dallas-for-the-jfk-lancer-group-november-23-2013/

And, please listen to:

Joan Mellen on WLRN’s Topical Currents, Joan Mellen Discusses “The Great Game in Cuba: How the CIA Sabotaged Its Own Plot to Unseat Fidel Castro” 15 April 2013.

http://joanmellen.com/wordpress/2013/04/15/joan-mellen-on-wlrns-topical-currents/

"Joan Mellen is the bestselling author of twenty books, including A Farewell to Justice, her biographical study of Jim Garrison’s New Orleans investigation of the Kennedy assassination. She has written for a variety of publications, including the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, and Baltimore Sun. Mellen is a professor of English and creative writing at Temple University in Philadelphia.

In 2004, she was awarded one of Temple University's coveted “Great Teacher” awards for outstanding achievement, in particular in the graduate program in creative writing. Joan Mellen lives in Pennington, New Jersey."

2. "The Politics of the CIA", presented at the 23 Nov 2013 annual meeting of COPA, Coalition on Political Assassinations, Dallas, Texas, Dr. Joan Mellen.

http://joanmellen.com/wordpress/2013/12/03/the-politics-of-cia-presented-joan-mellen-at-the-annual-meeting-of-copa-coalition-on-political-assassinations/

3."Who Rules American? How Did We Get Here?", Stewart Mott House, Washington, D.C., September 14, 2007, Dr. Joan Mellen

http://joanmellen.com/wordpress/speeches/who-rules-america-how-did-we-get-here/

4."TheTwo NPIC Zapruder Film Events: Signposts Pointing to the Film’sAlteration", Douglas P. Horne, www.assassinationofjfk.net

and Inside the Assassination Records Review Board, by Douglas P. Horne.

https://www.amazon.com/Inside-Assassination-Records-Review-Board/dp/0984314431

How Rude… and Spooky, Too!

Our Canadian brothers and sisters at the University of Waterloo have developed a new form of radar that puts to use "quantum entanglement". You might recall that Mr. Einstein labeled that stuff, "spooky action at a distance."

“Quantum radar”, as it’s called, “ uses a sensing technique called quantum illumination to detect and receive information about an object. At its core, it leverages the quantum principle of entanglement, where two photons form a connected, or entangled, pair”.

The new technology helps “cut through heavy background noise and isolate objects —including stealth aircraft and missiles— with unparalleled accuracy”.

How rude of them! How many $zillions did we spend on stealth aircraft and other stealthy tech?

Here’s the story:

Quantum radar will expose stealth aircraft, University of Waterloo, Institute for Quantum Computing, 12 Apr 2018.

"Stealth aircraft in the Canadian arctic will be no match for a new quantum radar system."

"Researchers at the University of Waterloo are developing a new technology that promises to help radar operators cut through heavy background noise and isolate objects —including stealth aircraft and missiles— with unparalleled accuracy."

“In the Arctic, space weather such as geomagnetic storms and solar flares interfere with radar operation and make the effective identification of objects more challenging,” said Jonathan Baugh, a faculty member at the Institute for Quantum Computing (IQC) and a professor in the Department of Chemistry who is leading the project with three other researchers at IQC and the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology. “By moving from traditional radar to quantum radar, we hope to not only cut through this noise, but also to identify objects that have been specifically designed to avoid detection."

"Stealth aircraft rely on special paint and body design to absorb and deflect radio waves—making them invisible to traditional radar. They also use electronic jamming to swamp detectors with artificial noise. With quantum radar, in theory, these planes will not only be exposed, but also unaware they have been detected."

Please go here for more about quantum radar...

Classics IV - Spooky - 1967

Direct Energy “Ray Gun” Shuts Down Murderous Vehicles

A model of the short-range radio frequency stopper under development to stop
vehicle attacks, developed by JNLWD. Photo taken March, 2018.

It’s good to learn that a few of those$ bazillions in defense and black budget funding have been put to use for creating new technology for defending the public. Here’s an example of “Ray Gun” direct energy weapon technology that may one day be used to protect innocents from crazy people using trucks, cars, aircraft, boats as murder weapons.

Here's the story:

The Pentagon Is Making a Ray Gun to Stop Truck Attacks, Patrick Tucker, defenseone.com, 24 Apr 2018.

“A device that resembles an old phonograph may soon be used to jam and shut down vehicles like the one that killed 10 people in Toronto.”

“The van driver who killed 10 Toronto pedestrians on Monday showed that a terror technique that ISIS pioneered in Iraq and Syria in 2015 remains terrifyingly effective against unsuspecting urban populations. But the U.S. military is working on a new weapon to stop vehicle-born terrorist threats, one that could help police departments as well.”

“The Defense Department’s Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Program, or JNLWD, is pushing ahead with a new direct energy weapon that uses high-powered microwaves to stop cars in their tracks without damaging the vehicle, its driver, or anyone else.”

“The jammer works by targeting the car’s engine control unit causing it to reboot over and over, stalling the engine. Like an invisible hand, the microwaves hold the car in place. “Anything that has electronics on it, these high-powered microwaves will affect,” David Law, who leads JNLWD’s technology division, said in March. “As long as the [radio] is on, it holds the vehicle stopped.”

Please go here for the rest of the story.

Vehicle Vessel Stopping RF HPM 480p