SeniorJunior

Make Our Infrastructure Into A Super-Infrastructure In a fool's paradise, who is the fool? The big Midwestern floods just put an explanation point on the truth most of us know but seem powerless to do anything about: Our infrastructure is crumbling. “We” are powerless because we let the people who can do something, our elected federal officials, do nothing. Are we stoopid or unconscious or what? And we all just witnessed dikes breaking and homes, businesses and farms being ruined. Again. "We need profound changes," said engineer Kumares Sinha of Purdue University. "We can't live in a fool's paradise." (From the same Reuters article) Elected officials are afraid of the word “tax.” If something worthwhile needs doing and takes money to do it, our Congress and our Administration act like we are teenagers with credit cards. Actually pay for what we need? Horrors! Politicians who have the guts ask our citizens to sacrifice a bit to pa

Oh, Never Mind... Just Wishful Thinking (and that's the last update) UPDATED 1:00 PM (MST) 10/15  Look at the number of times "HURRICANE PROOF" is mentioned below in the "greatness" plan for rebuilding P.R.  I saw today Elon Musk and Governor   Ricardo Rosselló  are talking "all renewable" power sources. Puerto Ricans were already talking about it, but when Elon Musk weighs in, there is a much higher likelihood of something getting done. And it sure as heck could be built to be  "HURRICANE PROOF!" Think about ELIMINATING the old-school high voltage power grid with huge towers and miles of cable, replacing them with "micro grids" that just cover small areas like cities and towns, powered by solar, wind and big storage batteries. Trump doles out vital supplies Never mind the politics....... A HUGE plan is needed Puerto Rico was CRUSHED by Hurricane Maria. The more we learn, the more terrible it looks. Li

"Comments" For several years, most of my opinionating happened on this blog.  Lately, my time at the keyboard has been mostly devoted to fictionalizing.  However, the opinions keep storming up out of my deeper brain centers and are impossible to repress.  So my efforts have moved to making "comments" on various articles, columns and op-eds. I have a sneaking feeling that these tidbits get more readership than they would if they appeared only on this blog. And since they are in response to something (sometimes to other commenters commenting on the column), I don't really have to establish a context, thus I can be pithier.  I love pithy. ANYWAY.... Here are my recent efforts.  Granted they might not make any sense if you didn't read the piece I'm commenting on. But at least you can see I haven't entirely abandoned reality for sci-fi. NEW SEQUENCING   From this point, the latest comments will be here first, rather than at the ever-retreating