Lies, Damned Lies And More Lies

Posted on February 13, 2019 by Robert Pogson

I finished watching the primetime shows on CNN and took a bedtime snack. While chewing, I switched to “that other channel”, you know, the one beloved by Trumpists. There was Tucker Carlson raving about how USA should not try to clean up the environment because China pollutes way more. Besides that being irrelevant, he ignored that China was doing way more than USA to convert from fossil fuel to renewable energy. e.g. making and selling millions of electric vehicles annually and putting up more gigawatts of solar power by far. You can’t even afford to register a gas-guzzler in some parts of China because of the taxes. People are pressured to buy EVs and they love them because they cost less to drive and less to maintain. China registered over a million EVs last year. USA? About a third as many. China did produce nearly double the CO2 that USA did but China has four times as many people. The Chinese are doing their part to fight global warming. They aren’t all trying to drive a pickup truck to work…

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Schultz

Posted on February 13, 2019 by Robert Pogson

That’s Howard Schultz, the Starbucks coffee guy.  He participated in a “Town Hall” session on CNN last night. He’s half-baked. He’s like Trump, hiding massive details behind a single number or “fact”. He couldn’t answer simple questions like why he was running except to say he’s not them, pointing to the left and the right of the political spectrum. He did differentiate himself from Trump, having a heart and some good intentions but he hardly differentiated himself from many Democrats who are long on ideas and short on details.

Healthcare: All he would say is that the idea of universal health care is impossibly expensive and nothing like that could ever be done by government. He likes the idea of corporations providing health care insurance instead as if corporations had hearts. What about the unemployed and the unemployable? Should we let them die homeless? The fact that many other countries can afford universal healthcare seems utterly irrelevant to this man because it doesn’t fit his world-view. If he does run for POTUS, let’s hope he learns a few things during the campaign or it will be Trumpism all over again.

Green New Deal: He heaped scorn on this as disruptive, impossible and too expensive without weighing the cost of doing nothing and nothing was all he had to offer. No idea about fighting global warming and reducing CO2 production dramatically. He might as well be Trump’s EPA-guy.

VA: Oh, yes, he’s going to fix that by hiring the best people and holding them accountable… Where have we heard that? Oh, yes, Trump.

I think this guy is a pitiful excuse for a presidential candidate. He may have a few good ideas but he has no idea how to implement them and he’s woefully ignorant of many operations of government. He never once mentioned hiring a team who actually knew something about government. He’s just Trump 2.0, a little more moral but an idiot still. Worse, he will syphon a few votes from Trump and a lot from the Democratic candidate, guaranteeing the worst possible outcome in 2020. When asked whether he would drop out in 2020 if the polling suggested he was boosting Trump, he declined to answer. All he would say that he would not run if the numbers showed he was boosting Trump “in the next few months”. Also, he promised to be transparent about his finances but refused to promise to divest, even after he was reminded of his huge coffee-empire in China. No doubt he’s more concerned about his net worth than running the government for the greater good. Selling his shares in Starbucks would likely tank the price of the shares after all. He’s Trump 2.0, Trump plus some very minor improvement.

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The Buzz

Posted on February 7, 2019 by Robert Pogson

I’m taking a little break from Trump and thinking positive thoughts for the future.

There aren’t a lot of bees around my yard most times. I see the occasional one in the caraganas or the dandelions but I fear there are not enough for when my fruit trees flower profusely, probably in a year or two. I’ve thought of setting up homes for mason bees in logs but it’s hard to be sure of the numbers. If I had a hive of honey-bees however… I could be rolling in bees and perhaps get some honey. I have a neighbour whose fruit trees are mature but production is quite variable. I don’t see a home for mason bees there so I’ll just do my own thing. If I put up bee houses and hives this year, I should be able to meet the need next year. Even TLW is OK with the idea of increasing production of fruit. She loves raspberries and other berries. What harm could a few bees do?

There is lots of information on the web about starting into bee-keeping and governmental regulations are rather simple. Register the hives and check frequently the health of the colonies, particularly against varroa mites. One can obtain queen bees and a starting colony from local retailers. They are expensive but if you do your part, the bees will prosper and be very productive. One can let them keep most of their honey to overwinter. One needs to treat for mites in the fall after the honey season if the infestation is above a few percent threshold. One can either sample the bees, inspect the bees or watch for mites falling out the bottom of the hive onto a screen. It’s all good. If I start with a mite-free colony I should be good for at least one season. Treatment consists of allowing bees to brush by miticidal strips at the door. I’ll plant some extra clover, dandelions, alfalfa and marigolds to help the bees near the end of the season of nectar. Diverse and plentiful supplies of nectar and pollen are the other half of the equation to keeping bees happy and productive.

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&%%%!@## Generator!

Posted on January 24, 2019 by Robert Pogson

I bought a small gasoline-powered generator for emergency backup around the house. We don’t get a lot of power failures here but they often are inconvenient and at night after a thunderstorm. The thing was easy to unload and unbox. Topped up the fluids and gave it a spin and another and another. It would not start. As the weather was marginal for 10W-30, I drained the cold oil and replaced it with 5W-30. Still no joy.

I checked all the usual culprits:

  • fuel was reaching the carburetor
  • spark-plug was pristine
  • switch was “ON/1”
  • machine was on a level surface
  • disconnected the oil level kill switch

Voila! It started! Joy! After a couple of minutes it stopped abruptly. Another pull got it running again and again it stopped.

I fiddled with this thing for hours and never got it to run longer than about 10 minutes. In frustration, I called “customer support” and got put on hold a lot. Finally, I was transferred to a tech who knew the beast inside and out. He walked me through the same checklist I had done to no avail. He then said to disconnect the black wire to the kill switch. I had seen the wire but did not see the disconnect. It was hidden under a thick black rubbery sleeve. I had to put down the phone to have enough strength to disconnect the kill switch and the thing ran and ran… I thought I had it made. The thing could be stopped by turning off the fuel. Unfortunately, there are more than one kill switch: oil, the red rocker switch, and an overvoltage protector… They all grounded that black wire to the spark coil…

To identify which part was causing the problem I volunteered to disassemble the control-panel and isolate the rocker switch and the overvoltage protector one at a time. The front panel came off easily with four accessible screws. The back of the panel had to be removed and that required more dexterity than I could easily muster in the cold. Finally, I had everything exposed. I disconnected the rocker switch and the problem persisted. That meant it was the overvoltage protector. I reconnected the rocker, fired the machine up and it ran and ran even with the overvoltage protector engaged. I called the tech back and we were both at a loss. It had to be the overvoltage protector but it wasn’t…

Next day, I fired up the machine and it died after a few minutes… ARGHHH! I hate intermittent defects.

It’s possible the orientation of the control-panel affects this thing. Upright the problem exists. Hanging out sideways, the problem disappears. Another possibility is that the voltage regulator on the alternator produces spikes randomly witch trip the overvoltage device. I’ve been running with no load. Perhaps with a load the spikes will be less and the problem will be “contained”. To be continued…

PS: Chuckle. After thinking about it quite a while, I tried one more thing. I connected a work light drawing ~150W after I got the machine started. It ran smoothly for 40minutes! I should make a peak detecting circuit to see whether the spikes in output are serious. Otherwise, this generator is good enough for what I do. It’s not designed for winter here or rain in summer but I can compensate by changing oil more frequently in winter and warming it up and giving it a canopy.

PPS: After an exchange of e-mail, the manufacturer offered to send a new voltage regulator and over voltage protection device. Great! The regulator is just under the end-cap of the alternator and the OVP device is on the inside of the control panel. I can do this…

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Why, Iowa? Why?

Posted on January 23, 2019 by Robert Pogson

“President Donald Trump’s trade war with China sent soybean prices to 10-year lows just as new steel tariffs drove up the cost of equipment and devoured the year’s profits.
 
“As soon as the tariffs were put on steel, the cost of a new grain bin went up 15-25%,” he says, pointing toward a massive steel container of corn. “So things are already tight and if you’re thinking about buying a grain bin, you’re probably not going to do it now.”
 
Yet he refuses to criticize the policies of a President who flipped Iowa from blue to red with the help of farmers.”
 
See First soybeans, then shutdown. But Iowa farmers still back TrumpIn my family there were a lot of farmers and few of them would have fallen for Trump’s lies. Trump lies about EVERYTHING, folks! Think for yourself. Check out the numbers. You and your descendants are going to pay for Trump’s generosity to his rich friends. He’s willing to beset millions of people just like you to further implement his weird policies. He’s betrayed the country to the Russians. What more evidence do you need that he’s not your friend?

Come on Iowa! Think for yourself. Don’t believe anything Trump repeats ad nauseam. A wall won’t keep out any determined individual or gang. He doesn’t make deals. He breaks them. He’s actively trying to destroy the climate that makes Iowa so productive. Remember the occasional drought? Expect more of them if Trump keeps supporting coal and big automakers and big oil.

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Words And Misdemeanours

Posted on January 18, 2019 by Robert Pogson

Misdemeanours and high crimes are supposedly what the US constitution sets as limits to presidential behaviour for impeachment. I think the present FAKE POTUS has greatly exceeded his quota:

LIAR! LIAR! LIAR!, TRAITOR, BULLY, PIG (apologies to pigs, some of whom are decent), MALE CHAUVINIST PIG, MISOGYNIST, RACIST, NARCISSIST, CHEAT, WEAK, FOOL, INSANE, WILFULLY IGNORANT, IMPULSIVE, CHILDISH, IMPATIENT, UNSTABLE, EXHIBITIONIST, INCOMPETENT, DADDY’S LITTLE BOY, DRAFT DODGER, ORGANIZED CRIMINAL

I don’t intend to justify each of these descriptions of Trump. He’s demonstrated all to the public for years even before he ran for public office. US electors should be ashamed they were so easily fooled by such an imitation of a man. The Government of PIGS (GOP) should be treated as a criminal organization for supporting this crime of the century. Perhaps the only good thing to come out of this huge faux pas will be a regeneration of USAian democracy with a newer healthier generation of elected representatives cleaning House and Senate and the Oval Office.

The next step is to impeach Trump and if Pence pardons him or continues the insanity, to impeach PENCE. Pelosi will be a breath of fresh air. In one term she can right the ship and pass the reigns of power to a younger generation of good-hearted people.

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Smartphones Mature

Posted on January 8, 2019 by Robert Pogson

“Samsung Electronics recorded its highest ever profits last quarter, but three months on things aren’t looking so great. The company issued guidance today warning that revenue and profits for the three months ending December 31st 2018 will be sharply down year-on-year. Samsung expects sales of about 59 trillion won (about $52.5 billion), down 11 percent from 12 months prior, while operating profit is set to drop 29 percent to about 10.8 trillion won (about $9.6 billion).”
 
See Samsung warns of sharp sales and profit declineIt had to happen sooner or later. Now that almost everyone and their dogs have smartphones, the novelty has worn off. One should not have to pay an arm and a leg for something that is “state of the art”/old fashioned/old. Since decent smartphones can be purchased for ~$100 and often “thrown in” by service providers, only fools with too much money will spend ~$1000 for a new phone they don’t really need. Gone is brand loyalty or desperation to remain current.

My own smartphone which was nearly obsolete when I bought it and lacks endurance and storage is still good enough to browse the web during commercials, take some pictures or navigate my neighbourhood. As long as it keeps working I won’t be tempted to buy another. No need. Better things to do with my money, like buying parts to repair my ancient snowblower…

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I Tweet, Therefor I Am

Posted on January 6, 2019 by Robert Pogson

I’ve been on Twitter for ages but not very active. I was moved to Tweet today because of the mindless repetition of the “we’ll wait for Mueller” stuff. This time it was from Adam Schiff…

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Electra Meccanica Provides Details On Production Of The SOLO EV

Posted on December 21, 2018 by Robert Pogson

“In 2018, Electra Meccanica produced over 40 manually-built vehicles at their first manufacturing facility in Vancouver, BC and delivered them to customers throughout the United States and Canada. These vehicles were delivered to paying customers and potential customers in efforts to conduct pilot tests for commercial use, as well as used for Global Compliance testing, such as crash tests. The Company revealed an image gallery of the first SOLO EV’s that were delivered to customers during 2018, which can be viewed at Gallery .
 
In October 2017, Electra Meccanica signed a manufacturing agreement with their strategic partner, Zongshen Industrial Group Co., Ltd, to produce mass quantities of the Company’s SOLO all-electric vehicle at their manufacturing factory based in Chongqing, China. This manufacturing facility recently shipped its first two 2019 SOLO EV’s to the the Company’s headquarters in Vancouver for on-road testing. An additional 48 SOLO EV’s are scheduled for shipment from the Zongshen factory to Los Angeles, Portland and Vancouver in the first quarter of 2019.”
 
See Electra Meccanica Provides Production Update for Model SOLO EV’s From High-Volume Manufacturing Facility Nasdaq:SOLONow there’s a proper press-release. I guess we are the press…

It appears EMV doesn’t want to over-promise. “first quarter of 2019” is still very vague and far away from delivery to me in Canada… When I schedule something for delivery, there is a date certain that I could tell people. When I ordered heavy items from China, I knew which boat carried them and the date of unloading and clearance at Customs and … I guess good things are worth the wait.

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2019 SOLO Is Being Produced En Masse

Posted on December 20, 2018 by Robert Pogson

Check out 2019 SOLO – Factory to see the assembly line of the SOLO. The latest EMV update suggests EMV will be able to deliver thousands of Solos in 2019. Amen!

My observations:

  • They really have a great capacity to crank out Solos.
  • The Solo is quite modular so it’s perfect for the assembly line.
  • The supply-chain is working…
  • Sadly, with the addition of air-conditioning and cooling for motor and battery, the front trunk seems to have shrunk. That could impact my ability to hunt/gather/shoot…
  • 2019 will be the year I get my Solo!
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Evangelism!?!?

Posted on December 18, 2018 by Robert Pogson

“With the unique exception of white evangelical Protestants, majorities of all other major religious groups have an unfavorable opinion of Trump. Majorities of black Protestants (80%), religiously unaffiliated Americans (75%), Hispanic Catholics (74%), non-Christian religious Americans (73%), white mainline Protestants (52%), and white Catholics (52%) have a negative opinion of Trump. By contrast, almost seven in ten (68%) white evangelical Protestants have a favorable view of Trump, including 28% who have a very favorable view.”
 
See Partisan Polarization Dominates Trump Era: Findings from the 2018 American Values SurveyPuzzling. Why do white evangelicals in USA support Trump? He’s white but nothing about his policies is Christian let alone good, proper, efficient or wholesome.

Take “the wall”, for instance. Would Christ have built a wall?

Old Testament:
Deuteronomy Chapter 3
“And we took all his cities at that time, there was not a city which we took not from them, threescore cities, all the region of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan.
 
All these cities were fenced with high walls, gates, and bars; beside unwalled towns a great many.
 
And we utterly destroyed them, as we did unto Sihon king of Heshbon, utterly destroying the men, women, and children, of every city.”

See? God knows walls don’t work.

New Testament:
Acts of the Apostles Chapter 9:
“And after that many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel to kill him
 
But their laying await was known of Saul. And they watched the gates day and night to kill him.
 
Then the disciples took him by night, and let him down by the wall in a basket.”

See? The disciples knew walls don’t work. Why can’t white evangelicals see that? Are they blinded by Satan?

Romans Chapter 16:
“Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.
 
For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.
 
For your obedience is come abroad unto all men. I am glad therefore on your behalf: but yet I would have you wise unto that which is good, and simple concerning evil.
 
And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.”

It’s pretty clear. If you support Trumpism, you are doing Satan’s work. Stop that before it’s too late. Satan always tempts with treats but it’s never good to make a deal with Satan. Wake up!

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Trumpism Becoming Irrelevant On The Global Stage

Posted on December 17, 2018 by Robert Pogson

“Once again, the Trump administration is pandering to corporate polluters at the expense of those suffering the worst impacts of climate change. From boasting about fossil fuel production to refusing endorsement of the staggering UN IPCC report on the climate crisis, the official US response to COP 24 has been deeply disturbing. Despite this administration’s actions, communities across America are building support from the ground up for transformative climate action. These past weeks, momentum has soared for a Green New Deal, bringing climate change to the forefront in headlines and the halls of power. Trump and his allies can dig in their heels, but the movement for a just transition off of fossil fuels to a 100% renewable energy economy won’t be stopped.”
 
See 350.org on Trump administration’s COP 24 statementJust as many cities and states of USA are ignoring Trump as best they can, so is the world. While Trump can do a lot of damage in the meantime, a lot of that damage can be reversed by independent action by cities and states, whole industries, individuals, organizations and politicians in opposition at all levels. The world can as well. Just ignore the bellowing from the White House and get on with life. Trump will be gone sooner or later and we can all do the right things needed to leave a livable planet to our descendants.

One thing that still puzzles me is the attitude to impeachment. There is no requirement that a full slate of impeachable offences be charged on the scroll, just a sufficient number in the minds of Congress. Presently, many are treating impeachment as a hot potato to be avoided at all costs. There is a cost to tolerating Trump, continued rampant corruption and bad government. What is it that would lead Trump and his partners to suddenly change their stripes of criminal behaviour before election and after? Nothing. The crimes and bad effects of Trumpism will continue until Trump is stopped, one way or another. Get on with it, Congress. If the House votes to impeach but the Government of Pigs in the Senate refuse, that will be on their heads, ensuring Trump will be out at the next election. The citizens are ready to vote even if the politicians fear to do so.

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