Climate Control Is An Economic Issue
Wednesday, December 9th, 2009Author Linda Brady Traynham
Economic matters are far easier to understand if we view the entire thrust of statist politics and policies as intended to destroy wealth and freedom. It doesn’t matter what the money is spent on, so long as it lowers the standard of living of the citizenry and increases control over the lives of the populace, preferably while leading to big payoffs to those who are behind the movements.
A simple example is expiration dates. If we can be frightened into discarding perfectly good food and other products, value has been destroyed and the market for replacement items expanded. We all know not to use cans of tomato sauce that are bulging…but have you ever even seen one? I haven’t. A friend who stocked up lavishly for Y2K is just now consuming the last of his supplies, and he only threw out a few cans of tomato paste that had rusted because he is very cautious. The chances are excellent that there wasn’t a thing wrong with the contents.
“Oh, but you could get botulinus poisoning!” You are a lot more likely to be struck by lightening or hit by an asteroid. One of the very best ploys is attempting to protect everyone from everything which could conceivably happen. So far as the tomato products are concerned, if you are desperate enough to need them put them in your pressure canner for a good long time; just heating the suspect sauce to boiling is not, we are told, sufficient to destroy botulism. A far more sensible course is the one housewives have used since there have been canned goods: does it look okay and smell okay? If it were bubbling or frothing, or had a funny odor, sure, I’d throw whatever it was out. I’m picky enough that I have a “four day rule.” That means that if my crew doesn’t consume leftovers by the fourth day they (the scraps, not the fellows) go to the dogs or the hogs, not one of which has ever become ill from eating something a week or more old. (You have probably complained or heard strictures about the roast that got shoved to the back of the refrigerator…)
I’m certain you do not know that there is really no such thing as “spoiled” milk! Certainly, there is milk that has soured that we finicky humans consider unpalatable, but it isn’t the least bit dangerous. There never comes a point at which dogs and pigs won’t consume it happily and in complete safety. You can make cheese out of it at any time.
Consider the push for dirt “clean enough to eat.” Uh…except for those with mineral deficiencies who eat clay in Georgia, and Haitians making dirt cookies, nobody I know eats dirt. The policy, however, leads to disastrous expenses and restrictions on the uses of public and private property. A decade or so ago the State of Washington decided that all of the tanks in gas stations had to be removed and replaced because it might happen that one would rupture some day. No, not a single one had, and nobody even analyzed the probable effects of a few thousand gallons of gas leaking into the soil not far from ground level. In theory it could have contaminated an aquifer, but it is rare for water we drill wells for to be less than 40 feet down, and a couple of hundred is more common. At what point does “the sky might fall” need to be reined in by practicality? What happened was that most of the small stations were driven out of business because they could not pay for the mandated replacements. When the price of gas nears $3/gallon your local station isn’t making any more money than it did when unleaded was $2.00. The additional money goes to refiners, distributors, OPEC, and taxes. Who benefited from “protecting” us from the possibility of a ruptured tank? BP, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, and Hugo Chavez.
Which brings up the question of why we can’t have leaded gasoline any more. Lead in the gasoline makes a more efficient fuel that is easier on our motors. In theory, I suppose, someone who pumped gas all day for a living could breathe enough fumes to get a toxic level of heavy metal poisoning…but the last time I had a station that pumped my gas was in 1982! It is true that back when there was lead in paint (and superior paint it was, too) there were occasional cases of children chewing on their cribs. The solution is to paint cribs with acrylic-based paints and watch your children, not to foist inferior products on all of us.
Ah, the dreaded Freon! Makes holes in the ozone layer, right? Wrong. The hole in the ozone layer has always been there and is supposed to be there; it vents gases from volcanic eruptions. The real truth is that the patent on Freon had expired and could not be renewed again. Consequently, the makers saw that in order to maintain their very high levels of profit consumers had to be forced to buy a different substance, one that is less efficient, more expensive, more poisonous, and spreads the wealth around to those who retrofit AC units.
DDT. Made eagles’ egg shells so fragile it threatened the extinction of our national scavenger bird? Wrong. What DDT does is destroy mosquitoes and other pests. Tens of millions die in Africa every year now from malaria, which is spread by mosquitos, and the rest of us are plagued by the little pests biting us. Since mosquitos first, uh, spit an anesthetic and some of the blood of their last victim into your blood stream so that you don’t notice as quickly that you have been bitten, in time they may come to be a major carrier of AIDS.
Ethanol? A stunning disaster! It takes more energy to produce a gallon of ethanol than is returned when it is mixed with gasoline. Ethanol is very destructive on engine parts and produces less horsepower. Far worse, it turns food into fuel. Again, this year, 30% of the corn crop will be sacrificed upon the sacred alter of “emission control.” That is also 12% of all the corn that will be produced in the world this year. But what about smog, Mrs. Traynham? The conquistadores commented on smog over Mexico City hundreds of years ago, and it was a known phenomena in Los Angelos in the time of the missions. Should the world go hungry to lower smog somewhat in a few places that are in bowls where the wind does not blow the fumes away? Makes more sense to me to move somewhere else.
Over and over throughout my long life, the mainstream media has taken a report out of context and whipped up a horror story. Alar wasn’t true, acid rain wasn’t true, and restricting salt is a very dangerous decision. Humans and animals die without salt. What the report actually said was that 7% of hypertensives do better by restricting sodium chloride. Are you hypertensive? Neither am I. Ironically, the doctors found that the frustration of being denied salt raised the blood pressure on salt-reduced diets higher than the slight reductions which salt-deprivation produced.
As a very good rule, if the AMA or the government doesn’t want us to have it, such a substance is probably good for us, so long as we do not go to jail for possessing it. This is not an argument for marijuana, which I do not use; it is a statement that most restrictions are political in nature and have nothing to do with your health, happiness, and convenience. It is past time that we all stocked up on ordinary lightbulbs, because the mercury vapor ones are far more dangerous and produce less light.
If any of you can give me more examples from your lines of work, I would love to have them.
So called “climate control” is another gigantic transfer of wealth and increased misery and control, and I can’t think of a single useful thing to do to stop it.
Regards,
Linda Brady Traynham
Bart says:
December 9th, 2009
12:34 pm
Interesting.
I’m familiar with the truth behind many of your arguments, but this is the first defense of leaded gasoline, DDT or freon I’ve ever read. I don’t know whether to call you a conspiracy nut or if I should conduct my own research to find the truth behind your statements. Can you provide evidence to support your assertions? If so, I’d love to read it.
Oh, and I’ve known those “longer lasting” compact florescent bulbs were a scam from the day the greenies started pushing them so hard while completely overlooking the fact that they’re loaded with heavy metals. Since when did dumping mercury into landfills become green? Also, in my experience, they actually have had about a third the life of a good old fashioned light bulb. And I’m not supposed to throw the stupid things in the trash. Great. What now?
Where do you stand on Sarah Palin? I don’t know if she is just parroting things she’s told or if she really is a right-thinking (not politicially “right,” but “right” as in thinking things that are logical and true) politician or just another figurehead being shopped out to those of us who really are hungry for “change” that actually comes with truth and accountability attached (the polar opposite of what we have received with BHO).
Linda Brady Traynham says:
December 9th, 2009
11:43 pm
Hi, Bart, and thanks for writing. You’re probably not old enough to know about such things, and don’t get me started on why phosphates in the detergent were a GOOD thing in addition to keeping clothes white.
I don’t know yet how I feel about the Divine Sarah because I haven’t read her book or listened to her speeches, being too busy keeping up on other fronts so that I can write articles and handle my great correspondence–like yours. I don’t see how anything much could be worse than the last four presidents we’ve suffered under.
If you want to scare the living whey out of yourself get Rawles “Patriot.” What bothers me is that the “survivalist” group is ten strong and worked on their hideaway for 9 years “pre-position” supplies each purchased…and half way through the book they still haven’t contemplated how pleasant it would be to have a milk cow and some chickens! They haven’t planted so much as a radish in about a year, although they have defensive systems set up that are certainly beyond anything that crossed my mind in my wildest nightmares. Are they just going to sit there until the food and ammo runs out? I don’t know; MDC is finishing the book while I update my mail, and the clock will strike one a.m. soon.
Watch W&G for two upcoming articles on why city folks can’t just saunter out into the country and expect to find a garden of Eden before the snake showed up. Regards, Linda
Kevin says:
December 10th, 2009
10:28 am
For fun on ozone look up it’s half life in atmosphere which is about 30 minutes or so. Ozone is generated by UV radiation hitting the upper atmosphere. The reason there is a hole over the poles every year (and it alternates which pole) is the fact that the sun doesn’t shine directly on it for several months which is also why they have darkness.
Lead in gasoline was slowly going away on it’s own as advances in metallurgy allowed for hotter combustion. Hotter combustion also typically allows internal combustion engines to be more efficient, but then Nitrous oxides became an issue. This is why a modern american car which is fuel injected will have a lean cycle followed by a rich cycle for every other firing in a cylinder. This allows them to control the emissions. Honda invented a hotter cleaner burning engine with a different catalytic converter that interestingly enough was only allowed into the US in their hybrid the insight.
Linda Brady Traynham says:
December 10th, 2009
12:09 pm
Ooooh, Kevin! You smart, knowledgeable guy. We LIKE that around here. Chuckle…isn’t NO that stuff the kids have in cylinders that give their vehicles a sudden burst? Or is it what dentists used to use, or both? Our passion around here is older automotive masterpieces we can work on ourselves. Charles is mad for Jeeps, Anglias, and his 1950s Studebaker President. I collect vintage Jaguars and stray luxury cars…we’ve got a Daimler, for example, and some old diesel Mercedes…and we’re both nutty about odd bits of machinery, such as the bucket truck and the back hoe. It is absolutely amazing the things you can find on Craig’s List priced very moderately these days. We’re changing over to diesel wherever possible for cars, trucks, and tractors. So…hold forth, please, on whatever you know best that you think we’d find interesting! Linda
Kevin says:
December 10th, 2009
4:26 pm
Linda,
My bad. I typed nitrous when I was thinking nitric. Nitric oxide has one nitrogen and one oxygen. Nitrous has 2 nitrogens and one oxygen. Nitrous is the same stuff that is used by dentists and in cars and rocket engines (purity is the main difference.) Nitric is what happens when internal combustion engines burn lean. A leaner burn is also more fuel efficient. That’s what made the honda engines so interesting.
Linda Brady Traynham says:
December 10th, 2009
7:00 pm
Kevin, welcome to the crew. One can never have too many chemists or physicists around! Linda
Steve says:
December 11th, 2009
3:39 pm
Patriots, fun read a bit over the top I would think that the new government would form under such circumstances around Ft. Knox, assuming the gold there is real, with a ready access to an army stationed there,or maybe they come to Colorado Springs at Cheyene Mtn. and Ft Carson military base,another good read of concerning the colapse is Kunstlers World Made by Hand, again fun read and idealistic, made me think I was reading a Steven King horror novel.
Let’s see AMA, Food and Drug, Pharmaceutical companies,and the health industry. What ever happened to “an Apple a day”, why do we only treat sypmtoms and not causes? No money in cures, and where will the reasearch money come from once the health care is naturalized, oh I forgot the goverment has a printing press and I for one will be a bit uncomfortable with a Government Neurosurgeon,they just won’t have the same incentive as a private practitioner, sorry Obama we lost another one, Oh well, what times our tee time?
Malthus was probably right, he just didn’t know the future and was a bit before his time. It seems to me that the world has it’s priorities all mixed up. How long do you think it will be before all the rain forest in Brazil are gone now that the Chinese have obtained a taste for Big Mac’s and fries. If people think there is a CO2 problem now wait until the forrest are gone. And once that forrest is gone we won’t need research in medicine we will have destroyed all thats left of natures secrets. Who cares about ozone layers, ethanol, DDT, etc at that point.
It is just beyound me to figure out how the health system improves by just insuring more people at the expense of the people, and I still cannot figure out how you reduce co2 levels and control “global worming with Crap and Tax, and carbon credits that Wall Street can trade and develop new forms of deriviatives. Wall streeters should be giddy with the proposed opportunity of a new product they can screw each other with and once again suck the life out of the working people of America as well as the world.
And by the way, how come we cannot get anyone in Congress at least try to form and energy policy for this country, rather than trying to save the world, protect their jobs, and enable the poor, or is that the liberal policy to educate our young so they can solve the problem.
Not a good plan. Those that want to be educated will be, those that don’t won’t. I think they are working the wrong end of the spectrum, you would have to educate the parents before you can educate the children.
Sorry Linda I am rambling, but I havn’t written much over the last 25 years and lots of generalized thoughts without alot of base factual material, just opinion.
Linda Brady Traynham says:
December 13th, 2009
10:51 pm
crew…Steve got a long private answer because I got his e-mail first over on my private address.
CheriVNB says:
March 20th, 2010
7:33 pm
Linda,
I mean this in the most flattering way. You make me miss my Grandmother! She was decades older(94)than you of course but just as able to cut to the chase. Keep writing.
C~