American Politics

[Spidy]

If South Australia gets to 100% renewables by 2027, I'll kiss EihTooms' ass in the middle of Soi Cowboy at 10:00 PM on a Saturday night.

South Australia has the highest electricity prices in Australia, probably because it pushed renewables too hard. The wholesale price is almost twice Queensland's:

https://www.aer.gov.au/industry/wholesale/charts

I think youre missing the bigger picture. Whether its 2027, 2028 or 2029, when they do meet their goal of %100 renewables, it will signal, a milestone and a monumental moment in Australian and world energy history and prove that you can have renewables as base load and beyond.

In my books, even if they are still at 3-5% LNG, being used as a peaker plant and part of their energy mix, for those rear summer peak demands moments, its still a huge WIN!

And in 2023, SA consumers were paying 0. 45 AUD per kilowatt hour, or $0. 30 USD per kilowatt hour.

https://www.bluettipower.com.au/blog...-bELRHo-TfVGMz

For comparison, in the Great State of Texas, I pay about $0. 13 USD per kilowatt hour.

And Texas, by the way, generates about 40% of its electricity from renewables and nuclear.

Not sure whats the deal is with Australian electricity prices in general, but Australia has for a long time ranked among the worlds top 10 countries with the highest residential electricity prices. So comparing it with Texas, isnt realistic.

Yeah, I remember, the winter storm, which struck Texas in Feb 2021. Where a seized up grid and frozen windmills, let wholesale electricity prices, spike up, to a ridiculous price of $9,000/MWh. Leaving residents, with electrical bills of $10-17K for just a few days worth of electricity. (...kkkk!). So Texas is not without its hiccups!

Although, comparing SA with other Aussie states is fair, and their rates are the currently among highest in the country, when you take into account the cost/investment of transitioning to renewable energy, I would have thought, it'd be actually be higher than it is. Historically their rates have been higher then they are today. So while a bit high, it's only short term pain.

The higher rates, wont remain high, in the coming years. Couple that with their increased periods of negative rates, excess electricity sent to NEM and possible green hydrogen generation, theyll be more positive net gains to their flexible 100% renewable grid.

SA has turned the corner and are only using LNG as intermittent/peaker plant power sources. With regards to copycat state of Texas, nuclear is only 5-8%, and barely anything in the scheme things. While natural gas is still doing most of the heavy lifting, with wind, solar and batteries (SWB) as a very close second. It wont be long before copycat Texas follows places like SA and California, with SWB as the biggest part of their energy mix.

South Australia I believe has the largest onshore production of natural gas in Australia. Without that and natural gas fired power plants, SA would be reliant on coal for baseload electricity generation.

SA, phased out coal in 2016, as I reported. Natural gas (LNG) is next!

The Dominican Republic doesn't have natural gas reserves. It has to import LNG and fuel oil, which are expensive, or use coal, which is dirty and emits more carbon than natural gas. Now this admittedly is a good argument for renewables for intermittent supply in the DR, like what Texas does. But they're just not going to cost effectively supply all base load and peak load requirements.

The Dominican Republic during parts of the year has lots of cloud cover. A hell of a lot more than sunny SA.

Just repeating what I've already said doesn't do anything for your argument. Re-read my section on the "Recap of the Dominican Republics Energy Mix:". And don't worry so much, today's solar will still generate a fair amount of power on those approx. 125-165 cloudy days in the DR. But again, from what I've gleaned about the DR, they'll need a mixture of solutions, from SWB, and maybe pumped hydro, offshore wind and offshore solar, perhaps.

Your cost numbers per MW hour above are screwed. Please note that $60100 per MW hour for coal would be $60.10 per kw hour. That's off by a factor of around 1000. The real number is around $60 per MW hour or $. 06 per kw hour.

And you're saying that the cost to generate electricity from coal is 20 X the cost from solar and 17 X the cost of wind? The cost of generating electricity with a conventional nuclear plant is 15 X more than with a small nuclear reactor? That's complete and total bollocks.

What your looking at are LCOE project costs, in my report.

Then there's battery storage, which is essential in the tree hugger's pipe dream, which of course doesn't allow for base load electricity generation from nuclear. Cheerleaders for renewables understate the cost of storage. At some point the cost of battery storage may come down to where renewables can cost effectively supply base load electricity. But we're not there yet. And may never be in the USA (which admittedly doesn't preclude that from happening the DR) as long as the Democratic and Republican parties won't allow America to buy from China.

First, batteries are hardly ever paired with nuclear and suited with wind and solar. Second, the cost for storage is dropping everyday, with alternatives like Na-Li batteries being even cheaper. Third, when batteries are paired with S+W, the your LCOE, is better than buying them separately. Fourth, consider, there are projects in the U.S. (Texas, Arizona) now bid $30-$40/MWh for solar + 4h storage (with subsidies) LCOE. Still w/o subsidies globally, your looking at LCOE of $70-$80/MWh SWB combos.

Utility-Scale Solar, 2023 Edition: Empirical Trends in Deployment, Technology, Cost, Performance, PPA Pricing, and Value in the United States
https://emp.lbl.gov/publications/uti...r-2023-edition

he biggest consideration for the DR is the cost. Californians can afford to pay out the ass for energy. People in the DR cannot. Leftist elites in the developed world should not try to force high priced renewable energy onto developing countries unless they are first willing to give up air conditioning. Because that's what they'd be doing to people in places like the DR and India who would have to pay prices for energy even higher than South Australians. Some will be lucky to afford electric lighting so their kids can study at night, let alone A/C.

With an annual cost of between $2.55 - $3.47 billion dollars to import and burn fossil fuels for electricity, is good enough reason to look for cheaper, sustainable alternatives.

I'm sure you love it, when your right-winger billionaire robber oil-n-gas barons, run roughshod over poor struggling emerging countries and would like nothing better than to see them continue to suckle on their oil rich nipples, for the next 15-20 years. But I don't think they can afford NOT to adopt a 15-20 plan, to tackle the ever increasing and rising costs of fossil fuels and provide energy independence for their secured future, if shown what's possible.

Hence way I think the SA's example will show many, what's possible!

[Sirioja]

When driving back from my 2 German girls I enjoyed for total 270 €, on Sunday morning I was disappointed not to go for more than 288 km / h, but I didn't see any BYD, Tesla following me, but I really wish I will go faster. Maybe because with 95 E10 , when no french E85 in Germany, so I was maybe less powerful. Have to try to improve, powered with E85.

[EihTooms]

https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistoria...wii/?rdt=37175

Why didn't Britain hold elections during WWII?

It may seem like an obvious question but elections were held throughout the rest of the English speaking world; Canada, the USA, New Zealand and Australia.

Britain did hold elections during WWII. In 1945 they held an election that resulted in Clement Attlee being elected Prime Minister, replacing Churchill. There were also numerous elections to fill in empty seats in parliament during the war.

In Britain each sitting of parliament can last for 5 years at most before an election needs to take place. Parliament can be dissolved and elections called for earlier then every 5 years, but 5 years is the max. Parliament extended this 5 year limit during the war however.

Nope, it is zero pinocchios because the leader who was at war with Russia and who did not have elections was (wait for it), Adolf Hitler.

A Democratic douche against free and fair elections? Gee, that is a shocker.

Well, why you are citing Britain not conducting elections during the WWII bomb attacks, as some "proof" that Ukraine not conducting elections during their bomb attacks that Zellenskyy is an anti-democratic Nazi dictator is truly bewildering. Was Britain an anti-democratic Nazi dictatorship as well during WWII? Churchill? Is everybody an anti-democratic Nazi dictator now? I am sure President Musk's MAGAs would love for us to believe that. It paves the way for where President Musk and his assistant Trump would like to take us.

Moreover, other than a few stray Channel Islands, there was no Full-Scale Invasion of Britain by Germany as there is in Ukraine by Russia Russia Russia Russia.

You know where else neither Germany nor Japan invaded during WWII? This may come as a surprise to you, not sure about Tiny, but neither USA, Canada, New Zealand nor Australia were invaded by anybody during WWII. Neither were their land masses ever bombed by anyone during WWII. How about that?

Maybe Tiny can pitch in and provide links that unravel whatever gobbledygook lie you're trying to spin with this one and thereby prove you wrong and me right again.

See, if only you had provided the same links Tiny provided when you tried to float your original out-of-context post full of lies, unsubstantiated opinions and half-truths you would have so richly deserved and earned enough Pinnochios from the start to fill a Trump rally on this point and might not have dragged poor Tiny into the Pinocchio mob with you.

LOL. It is hilarious that as hard as Tiny tried to apologize for and defend your other lies in that post, certainly harder than you tried, the best he could come up with was "the second part is not true", "probably true", "probably true" and the all-time classic "these are mostly opinions and therefore not subject to fact-checking. ".

LOL. Hey, no kidding. Some "masterpiece".

As usual, it is I who should be thanking Tiny or anyone else who provides at least one minimally credible link for the lies MAGAs live to spin because even those are sure to contain at least one critical qualifier and detail that blows their entire premise and lie out of the water.

[Elvis 2008]

The rest of your links also illustrate why Elvis was lying with his out-of-context spin on it. And you too for defending him for it.

https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistoria...wii/?rdt=37175

Why didn't Britain hold elections during WWII?

It may seem like an obvious question but elections were held throughout the rest of the English speaking world; Canada, the USA, New Zealand and Australia.

Britain did hold elections during WWII. In 1945 they held an election that resulted in Clement Attlee being elected Prime Minister, replacing Churchill. There were also numerous elections to fill in empty seats in parliament during the war.

In Britain each sitting of parliament can last for 5 years at most before an election needs to take place. Parliament can be dissolved and elections called for earlier then every 5 years, but 5 years is the max. Parliament extended this 5 year limit during the war however.

Without it, the liar was suggesting that Zellenskyy was somehow anti-democratic, maybe a Nazi dictator. FIVE Pinocchios. And FIVE for you too for supporting his Lie.

Oh look. It is simply that the country can not conduct a free, fair and legitimate election while Russa Russia Russia Russia is engaged in a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, nothing whatsoever to do with Zellenskyy being anti-democratic or a Nazi dictator. PUTIN is more responsible for suspending elections in Ukraine than Zellenskyy.

Nope, it is zero pinocchios because the leader who was at war with Russia and who did not have elections was (wait for it), Adolf Hitler.

A Democratic douche against free and fair elections? Gee, that is a shocker.

[Tiny 12]

The revolution will not be televised Tiny 12. But when it comes I will let everyone know you are a good one!

It won't matter SubCmdr. We'll be living on our island paradises, far away from the revolution. Living in style too. I'll have my dividend paying stocks, and your Bitcoin holdings will soar even more because of the political upheaval.

Hope you'll visit, provided that you bring some fine looking Dominican wenches!

[Tiny 12]

Excellent post Tiny...

Thanks Elvis. Yes, not to be immodest, but I thought it was a masterpiece. And I had to sacrifice. I had to choose between writing that post, and the reply to Spidy, or going to Black Caviar or Soi Cowboy on my last night in Bangkok. Given I'm trying to finally embark on a life of monogamy, the choice was simpler than it sounds though.

I'm looking forward to reading up on the new virus. Packing up right now so it will have to wait for another day.

[Tiny 12]

I disagree Tiny. I think the uppermost qualification in Trump 47's mind is loyalty and the 2nd most important is capability. I was surprised by the Hegseth choice myself. I thought Trump would pick Mike Pompeo or somebody like him with stature and experience. Guess I was wrong, but I am willing to give Hegseth a chance. If he fucks up Trump will fire him in a nano second.

Hi Axel, The one potentially redeeming characteristic of Hegseth is that he may cut waste and inefficiency, and establish a path toward lower defense spending. But given Hegseth's writings and ramblings, SubCmdr has an excellent point. Add that to his inexperience and I don't think he was a good pick.

Nobody on the board is going to agree with this, but I wish Trump had come up with a really inspired choice for Defense Secretary, like Rand Paul. He and Tulsi Gabbard at National Intelligence would be quite the pair!

I do trust Trump, who's not a neoconservative, more on defense than Hegseth, who may be.

[EihTooms]

Your demands for links have become tiresome. For example, more than once you've asked me to provide Google links for data I pulled from a proprietary database, that you could verify in seconds with a little initiative. OK, I'll help you out just this once. However, in the future please do your own fact checking.

This is true. Zero Pinocchio's!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy

This is true, as to martial law. And elections are banned when martial law is in effect. Zero Pinocchio's!

https://www.rnbo.gov.ua/en/Diialnist/7035.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Next_U...ntial_election

This is true. Zero Pinocchio's!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politi...ies_in_Ukraine

The first part of this statement, about the 2022 law, is true! The second part is not true as there are local stations broadcasting news.

One tenth of one Pinocchio!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedo...ess_in_Ukraine

This is probably true! Men over the age of 25, including journalists investigating Zelensky, are conscripted. And most likely some have served on the front lines. In addition, journalists are arrested and incarcerated. See Wikipedia link above and

https://www.state.gov/reports/2023-c...tices/ukraine/

This is probably true. It is not known whether Nazis still carry cards identifying themselves as Nazis. However please see the following link.

https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinio...ar-ncna1290946

I am not an avid viewer of Tucker Carlson but Elvis would have seen what he said he saw.

Zero Pinocchio's!

These are mostly opinions and not subject to fact-checking. The infection fatality ratio from COVID, while higher than 0. 2% at the start of the epidemic, probably is lower than that now. Elvis' number is as good as any. The gross federal debt is indeed $37 trillion, and the federal budget deficit, about $1.9 trillion, is indeed $2 trillion if rounded upwards.

Zero Pinocchio's!

And Elvis gets One Wise Man because of his willingness to vote for Bill Clinton, who helped Newt Gingrich balance the budget!

In your very first link regarding Zellenskyy declaring martial law and suspending elections, this is the all-important context we see IN that link you provided but Elvis would not:

Since the beginning of russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, this is the 13th extension of martial law and mobilisation.

See, this is why links matter. Oh, so sorry if providing context and substantiation is "tiresome" for the Trumpster MAGAs. Because they generally refute every lie Trumpster MAGAs need to spin.

I knew with 100% certainty that an ordinary link would provide the context that Elvis was avoiding like a vampire avoiding sunlight.

Without it, the liar was suggesting that Zellenskyy was somehow anti-democratic, maybe a Nazi dictator. FIVE Pinocchios. And FIVE for you too for supporting his Lie.

Oh look. It is simply that the country can not conduct a free, fair and legitimate election while Russa Russia Russia Russia is engaged in a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, nothing whatsoever to do with Zellenskyy being anti-democratic or a Nazi dictator. PUTIN is more responsible for suspending elections in Ukraine than Zellenskyy.

The rest of your links also illustrate why Elvis was lying with his out-of-context spin on it. And you too for defending him for it.

[SubCmdr]

I disagree Tiny. I think the uppermost qualification in Trump 47's mind is loyalty and the 2nd most important is capability. I was surprised by the Hegseth choice myself. I thought Trump would pick Mike Pompeo or somebody like him with stature and experience. Guess I was wrong, but I am willing to give Hegseth a chance. If he fucks up Trump will fire him in a nano second.

He certainly isn't qualified at all. He is a racist and a sexist. Loyalty to the Musk / Trump Co-Presidency that is building a growing Nazi movement called MAGA in the United States of America anathema to the oath he took to defend the Constitution of the Untied States of America from all enemies forgien and domestic.

It is the domestic ones I worry about now. The Musk / Trump Co-Presidency is building personal loyalty to themselves in order to take over the all functions of the government in a dictatorship.

We have seen this play run before in history: Reference made to Post #17283 written by me on 02/22/2025.

[Axel Heyst]

His most important qualification for president in Trump's eyes was probably that he looks good on television.

I disagree Tiny. I think the uppermost qualification in Trump 47's mind is loyalty and the 2nd most important is capability. I was surprised by the Hegseth choice myself. I thought Trump would pick Mike Pompeo or somebody like him with stature and experience. Guess I was wrong, but I am willing to give Hegseth a chance. If he fucks up Trump will fire him in a nano second.

[Elvis 2008]

These are mostly opinions and not subject to fact-checking. The infection fatality ratio from COVID, while higher than 0. 2% at the start of the epidemic, probably is lower than that now. Elvis' number is as good as any. The gross federal debt is indeed $37 trillion, and the federal budget deficit, about $1.9 trillion, is indeed $2 trillion if rounded upwards.

Zero Pinocchio's!

And Elvis gets One Wise Man because of his willingness to vote for Bill Clinton, who helped Newt Gingrich balance the budget!

Excellent post Tiny. I would love to think this puts Tooms in his place, but we know better right?

On the Covid infection, I would add two things. There was not sufficient tests available early on. Once testing was done on the general population versus the sick population, studies as early as April 2020 had rates as low as at 0. 3 and 0. 4%.

Thing is one of those studies had 500 people with 2 deaths. So the difference in that study between 0. 2 and 0.4% was one death.

In addition, doctors had to learn how to treat patients. The use of steroids and anticoagulants became standard practice. If monoclonal antibodies had been used more widely, the rate of Covid deaths may have been less than 0. 2%. In addition, doctors had to learn to keep Covid patients off ventilators as long as possible as 80% of the time a Covid patient was placed on a ventilator, they died.

The reason that I brought this up is that there is a new pandemic scare that I suspect is bullshit, https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/st...ial-discovered.

So here is the scare sentence: The new virus is even closer related to MERS, a deadlier type of coronavirus that kills up to a third of people it infects.

The key sentences is at the end: HKU5-CoV viruses were first detected in bats in 2006, but the new data suggests HKU5-CoV-2 has a 'higher potential for interspecies infection' than others. However, the potential for HKU5-CoV-2 to spill over to humans 'remains to be investigated. '

The reason I think this is bullshit is Covid was designed in a lab to be as contagious is possible, and this virus then is likely way less contagioius. Also, the mortality rates on this new virus are likely also way overestimated as Covid was.

But yeah, great post, Tiny. Thing is that my post was not even about the facts but that Zelensky's image is taking a hit. When you want to deify someone, you do not mention their negatives. The idea that Tooms is floating, that Zelensky is flawless, is pretty absurd.

[Tiny 12]

Even Without knowing anything about Brown, I'm confident he's more qualified to be Secretary of Defense than the man who fired him.

[SubCmdr]

So Secretary of State Mark Rubio is the token minority in the Cabinet. They can point to him and say, we are not anti-diversity.

The revolution will not be televised Tiny 12. But when it comes I will let everyone know you are a good one!

I thought I was clear SubCmdr. Hegseth was a bad nominee, and based on what he wrote people should have known he'd preferentially fire women and anyone who could be accused of getting ahead because of DEI. In other words anyone who wasn't white.

His most important qualification for president in Trump's eyes was probably that he looks good on television.

Dummies don't get into Princeton. That doesn't mean he was qualified for the office. He wasn't.

[Tiny 12]

I thought I was clear SubCmdr. Hegseth was a bad nominee, and based on what he wrote people should have known he'd preferentially fire women and anyone who could be accused of getting ahead because of DEI. In other words anyone who wasn't white.

His most important qualification for president in Trump's eyes was probably that he looks good on television.

Dummies don't get into Princeton. That doesn't mean he was qualified for the office. He wasn't.

[SubCmdr]

It should also be noted that two females that were in charge of services, The US Coast Guard and the US Navy were also fired. Along with the commanders of the Judge Advocate Generals.

Why exactly do you think Hegseth a smart guy? Because he has an Ivy League education. Why did Hegseth get the job? He faced allegations of sexual misconduct, financial mismanagement, and alcohol issues leading up to his committee confirmation. He was a Major. Please! Do you think I am smart guy? Do I have an Ivy league education (or equivalent. Think John Elway)? Do you question if I would gotten any jobs I held throughout my adult years because I am black?

At that level it is not about absolute confidence, it is about politics

The Musk/Trump Co-Presidencys objective is the cement power for the billionaire class under authoritarian rule that is un-democratic and weld unchecked power!

No room for blacks or women in the power structure under a Musk / Trump dictatorship. They want to take the United States of America back to theses days:

In the U.S. Constitution, the Three-fifths Compromise is part of Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3:

Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons.

Look around this thread and see who is a Trump Supporter. This is what they are supporting!

Republican lawmakers are pushing back against sweeping cuts to the federal government launched by President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, as their downsizing crusade begins to hit GOP constituents.

A growing number of GOP lawmakers are trying to intervene with the Trump administration and are weighing legislation to circumvent the changes. But with the Department of Government Efficiency and the Office of Management and Budget moving at a rapid clip and flouting federal law to carve up the government, the lawmakers face monumental challenges in getting the White House to spare their constituents from the ax.

Historically, we have seen this play run before:

Adolf Hitler's rise to power began in 1919 when he joined the German Workers' Party, which later became the Nazi Party. He quickly rose to prominence within the party and became its leader in 1921. During the 1920s, the Nazi Party remained on the political fringes, but gained significant support after the Great Depression began in 1929. Hitlers oratorical skills and the party's use of propaganda helped him to become extremely popular. On January 30, 1933, President Paul von Hindenburg appointed Hitler as Chancellor of Germany. After the Reichstag fire in February 1933, Hitler convinced Hindenburg to sign the Reichstag Fire Decree, which severely curtailed civil liberties and allowed for the persecution of political opponents. Hitler then proposed the Enabling Act, which gave him dictatorial powers and allowed him to pass laws without parliamentary oversight. By April 1933, Hitler held de facto dictatorial powers and ordered the construction of the first Nazi concentration camp at Dachau. Hitler's rise to power was completed in August 1934 when, after Hindenburg's death, he merged the chancellery with the presidency into the title of Fhrer.

MAGA is a NAZI movement in the United States of America!