The fallacy of American recycling

Bloviating Zeppelin   "From NPR.org:

Recycling Chaos In U.S. As China Bans ‘Foreign Waste’

by Cassandra Profita:  Like many Portland residents, Satish and Arlene Palshikar are serious recyclers. Their house is coated with recycled bluish-white paint. They recycle their rainwater, compost their food waste and carefully separate the paper and plastic they toss out. But recently, after loading up their Prius and driving to a sorting facility, they got a shock.

"Stop. You know me. You know I can’t resist. How typical is it that Leftists recycling in Oregon Leftist Central, Portlandia, have recycled paint on their house, recycled rainwater, possess a compost pile and thirty different recycling bins. They’re damned near a parody of themselves.

"But when they all piled into their Toyota Prius — clearly one of the most damaging cars on the planet when it comes to toxic materials, danger posed to emergency respondersand overall ground rape — I knew they were more (of course) naive little GOWPs.

"A Prius damaging to the environment? From NCPA.org:

PRIUS OUTDOES HUMMER IN ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE

The Toyota Prius, the flagship car for the environmentally conscious, is the source of some of the worst pollution in North America, and takes more combined energy to produce than a Hummer, says the Recorder.

Consider:

• The nickel contained in the Prius’ battery is mined and smelted at a plant in Ontario that has caused so much environmental damage to the surrounding environment that NASA has used the ‘dead zone’ around the plant to test moon rovers.
• Dubbed the Superstack, the factory has spread sulfur dioxide across northern Ontario, becoming every environmentalist’s nightmare.
• Acid rain around the area was so bad it destroyed all the plants and the soil slid down off the hillside, according to Canadian Greenpeace energy-coordinator David Martin.
• After leaving the plant, the nickel travels to Europe, China, Japan and United States, a hardly environmentally sound round the world trip for a single battery.

• 

"But that isn’t even the worst part, says the Record. According to a study by CNW Marketing, the total combined energy to produce a Prius (consisting of electrical, fuel, transportation, materials and hundreds of other factors over the expected lifetime), is greater than what it takes to produce a Hummer:

• The Prius costs an average of $3.25 per mile driven over a lifetime of 100,000 miles — the expected lifespan of the Hybrid.The Hummer, on the other hand, costs a more fiscal $1.95 per mile to put on the road over an expected lifetime of 300,000 miles.That means the Hummer will last three times longer than a Prius and use almost 50 percent less combined energy doing it.

From Wired.com:

Go Green — Buy a Used Car. It’s Better Than a Hybrid

Chuck Squatriglia:  DITCHING YOUR GAS guzzler is a great way to reduce your carbon footprint, but if you really want to do something about global warming, get a used car. You’ll be putting less carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

As Matt Power notes in this month’s issue of WIRED, hybrids get great gas mileage but it takes 113 million BTUs of energy to make a Toyota Prius. Because there are about 113,000 BTUs of energy in a gallon of gasoline, the Prius has consumed the equivalent of 1,000 gallons of gasoline before it reaches the showroom. Think of it as a carbon debt — one you won’t pay off until the Prius has turned over 46,000 miles or so.

There’s an easy way to avoid that debt — buy a used car. The debt has already been paid.

Much more; keep reading . . .

Toons added by TD

Virtue signalling from Slate: "Hallmark Christmas Movies Are White Nationalist Trump Propaganda, Of Course!"

Rush Limbaugh update at the bottom.
RedState

Red State writer Brad Slager opines: . . . "These movies are completely froth-filled, harmless holiday treacle with overly-familiar plotting and shot-glass deep characters always arriving to comfortable resolutions.

Oh, wait a tic – No! These are hate-filled racist lessons of weaponized pro-Trump aggression against all that is decent in this nation!!! At least that is the lesson delivered in Slate by writer Zachary Jason. He endeavored to watch 21 of these titles (seriously, props dude) and based on his essay he came away feeling as if he had witnessed nearly two dozen variations of “The Birth Of A Nation.”

“They all depict a fantasy world in which America has been Made Great Again,” writes Jason. “They brim with white heterosexuals who exclusively, emphatically, and endlessly bellow “Merry Christmas” to every lumberjack and labradoodle they pass.” They “bellow” this, mind you. It’s rather precious they way he resorts to hyperbole to express contempt for exaggerated representation.

. . . "Obliviousness reigns throughout the Slate piece, as it describes those demographics omitted in these productions are “everyone on Trump’s naughty list—Muslims (uh, do they celebrate Christmas???) gay people (I thought we should treat them as everyone else??), and feminists (who despise Hallmark-type traditionalism and would NEVER watch).

cartoon added

"Then, to lurch to hilariously hysterical levels of sensationalism, the men in these films are described as “strong-jawed heroes with white-nationalist haircuts.” I’m sure Mr. Jason thought he was delivering a hilarious rebuke here, except funnier than that is the charge arrives from the quill of a nearly translucent weak-jawed scribe. The writer himself resembles the wispy sort we recently witnessed brandishing tiki torches in Caucasian solidarity.

"While Hollywood has been desperate to load political commentary into everything from film narratives to sitcom plot lines to late-night talk shows and even our sports diversions, audiences are seeking out a respite. Yes, Hallmark Christmas movies are formulaic, cliche-ridden, and trope-filled affairs. What social scolds like Zachary Jason miss is that this is by design. The general public seeks out the familiar and comfortable during the holidays, to bring a welcome break from the constant little-drum-beat of how awful Trump is for us all."

Yet Hallmark is so popular they have expanded their programming across two channels: the Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies and Mysteries. TD

See all of Salon's posts so you will know their leftist positions know no balance before you read what they say about the Hallmark Channel

A super white Christmas: The Hallmark Channel gives us TV’s most homogeneous view of the holiday  

"Hallmark’s white Christmas tales have hooked holiday viewers while leaving minority actors out in the cold"

Fear not, feminists, help is on the way:
Disney plans feminist Santa Claus movie - with this FEMALE star tipped for the lead role

"Feminist Fail: Mrs. Claus Defined Only By Husband’s Accomplishments"  
. . . "We are complicit in this failure of feminism, by standing idly by and letting Mrs. Claus disappear in the large shadow of her portly, charismatic partner. It’s time to stand up for her and all forgotten housewives throughout history! So instead of leaving Santa cookies and milk this year, maybe put out copies of A Vindication of The Rights of Women by Mary Wollstonecraft, with some key passages highlighted."

Update from Rush Limbaugh: Virtue-signalling Slate Assaults the Hallmark Channel    "RUSH: How many of you watch the Hallmark Channel? This time of year, Hallmark has the classic Christmas movies of all time. They are wholesome. They are family oriented. They’re just the best Christmas movies and holiday movies that Hollywood’s produced. Well, Slate.com has published a scathing review of the network, claiming that it is showing round the clock Christmas movies that spread “Caucasian cheer.”

"Headline: “Hallmark Christmas Movies Under Fire for Spreading ‘Caucasian Cheer’ — ‘They brim with white heterosexuals who exclusively, emphatically, and endlessly bellow “Merry Christmas” to every lumberjack and labradoodle they pass. They’re centered on beauty-pageant heroines and strong-jawed heroes…’ the Slate writer declared. There were complaints about the lack of gay people and feminists and Muslims in Hallmark Channel’s movies.” Muslims don’t do Christmas! What…? What…? Anyway, I knew it was gonna happen. I knew this channel was gonna eventually come under assault for what it is, and it has now happened."

MSNBC Anchor Loses Net Neutrality Debate With Former FCC Commissioner [VIDEO

Daily Caller Video at this link.  "MSNBC anchor Ali Velshi got absolutely destroyed during an interview Thursday with former FCC commissioner Robert McDowell about net neutrality.

"Velshi got increasingly frustrated throughout the interview, even getting angry at his guest at one point for citing the laws that govern internet regulation.

"McDowell kicked off the interview by explaining that net neutrality, which applies Title II of the Communications Act of 1934 to broadband internet networks, wasn’t created until February of 2015.
. . . 
"Velshi, watching his narrative slipping away right in front of his eyes, came up with a scenario where Facebook could subsidize faster internet speeds in exchange for preferential treatment, reducing competition in the overall marketplace.

“ 'Section I and Section II of Sherman Act and Section III of Clayton Act…you just triggered all three of those sections,” McDowell smoothly responded. “That would be an anti-trust violation…that was against the law before February 2015 and it will be against the laws of today.”

"Velshi chastised McDowell for “dropping a lot of legal names,” asserting that the scenario he described “does happen.' ”

Will Net-Neutrality Zealots Apologize When The Internet Fails To Crash And Burn?  . . . "Tellingly, the first goal under net neutrality was to impose costly — and since repealed — privacy rules that had nothing to do with net neutrality. The second was to target an unlimited-video data plan provided by T-Mobile.
"Shorn of all the histrionics, the FCC's net-neutrality regime was little more than a blatant power grab by the Obama administration, and one that was completely unnecessary. There had been no evidence of consumer harm under the rules in place before 2015, and most of the claims about what ISPs will do — like those listed by Clyburn — are little more than ghost stories.
"Indeed, the only blocking and other forms of discrimination practiced on the internet these days has been from net-neutrality advocates like Twitter, Google and Facebook.
"In any case, the idea that the internet can only survive and thrive with the heavy hand of government guiding it has no historical support whatsoever."

FCC Restores Market Freedom To the Internet  . . . "The economics of supply and demand should be permitted to play out under free market conditions. Internet service providers, just like the large content providers, are not monopoly utilities that require utility-style regulation. That said, there will need to be antitrust enforcement by the Federal Trade Commission to prevent anti-competitive abuses, such as an Internet service providers favoring their own affiliated content providers in terms of quality of service, ease of customer access, or discriminatory pricing. The FCC’s repeal of the overly burdensome “net neutrality” rules in no way undermines the ability of the FCC or the Federal Trade Commission to step in and address any abuses that may arise." . . .

Pros and cons of net neutrality discussed:

Net neutrality is dead. Good riddance.   . . . "Meanwhile, Ajit Pai, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, has received death threats against his children. A man in Syracuse is facing federal charges after leaving a voicemail at the office of Rep. John Katko (R-N.Y.). "Listen Mr. Katko, if you support net neutrality, I will support you. But if you don't support net neutrality, I will find you and your family and I will kill you all. Do you understand? I will literally find all of you and your progeny and just wipe you from the face of the Earth.' " . . . 

Philadelphia Gets Approval To Remove Bulletproof Glass From Local Businesses

Daily Caller

Here is a photo of bulletproof glass.

"Philadelphia’s City Council voted to remove bulletproof glass windows from certain local businesses Thursday, upsetting shop owners who fear for their safety.

"The council passed the measure by a vote of 14-3 to remove protective glass that separates customers from the cash register. Lawmakers believe these stores may be serving as drug fronts and are attracting undesirable elements into the community, according to Fox News.

"The legislation stops short of full removal, however, and states the city’s Department of Licenses and Inspections must “promulgate regulations to provide for the use or removal of any physical barrier” in stores that offer food and alcohol by Jan. 1, 2021, Fox News Reports.

"The City Council chamber was full of store clerks and owners who were against the measure. Mostly Asian-American residents spoke out and asked the council to reconsider, according to Fox29.

“ 'I was the victim of a robbery when I was ten years old,” said one store 

owner. “And I don’t want that to happen again.”

"Another store owner spoke through an interpreter and said if the council goes through with the new rule, “more people will die.”

"The bill would have unintended consequences and force business owners to buy firearms to defend themselves, making the problem even worse, City councilman David Oh said, FoxNews reported.

“ 'If we take down the safety glass, they’re not changing their business model,” Oh said. “They’re not moving. What they will do is purchase firearms. I think that is a worse situation than what we have today.' ”

How the Media Already Have Twisted the Meaning of the Alabama Election

William Sullivan  . . . "Do you notice the sleight-of-hand in the language and messaging here?  On the one hand, “claims” of “sexual misconduct” were not the reason Moore lost suburbanites, and therefore the election.  It was because Trump’s “hard-edged policies” were rebuked.  On the other, “allegations” that Moore had “pursued teenage girls sexually or romantically” is what Roy Moore’s defenders are claiming was the real reason he lost.  But that’s simply not true, the Times now insists.

"To prove just how disingenuous this is, let’s try a thought experiment.  Had Roy Moore won the election, would the media narrative be about how Alabamans had the audacity to vote for a candidate who supports Trump’s “hard-edged” policies?  Or would it be about how deeply-red, backward Alabamans had the questionable moral proclivities which allowed them to elect an accused child predator? 

"You know the answer, and if the media were more honest than opportunistic, they would, too.  The media narrative prior to the election was not an effort to suggest that Alabama voters were wrong to agree with Trump’s desire to cut taxes, curtail illegal immigration, or repeal and/or replace Obamacare.  The loudest cries from the media ramparts were that Roy Moore winning the seat in Alabama would be a travesty because he was a suspected child predator.

"Yet interestingly, nowhere in the Times “takeaways” article is there a reference to the single, many decades-old, but extremely timely allegation of child molestation made by then-14-year-old Leigh Corfman.  Nor was there a reference to the single (and similarly old and timely) allegation of sexual assault made by Beverly Young Nelson, whose credibility has been verifiably called into question with her conflicting claims about the yearbook that Moore allegedly signed and inscribed in 1977. " . . .  Full article.

Feminists Rejoice: Transgender Man Loses Weight-Lifting Competition

"But Hubbard wasn’t hailed as a hero, for giving the competition the good schoolgirl try. Instead people cheered against Hubbard."

Kevin Jackson at The Blacksphere  "Feminist Rejoice: Transgender Man Loses Weight-Lifting Competition

"The transgender issue waits to blow up in the faces of women.

"As we’ve written, some men can’t wait to show women that we can be better at being women.

"Look at Bruce “Call me Caitlyn” Jenner. (S)he receives “Woman of the Year,” right out of the box. How bad that even outside of athletics, men make better women than feminists. As we wrote of feminism not long ago,

Feminism was supposed to empower women. Instead, feminism showcases what happens to women when men become women. Confused?It should come as no surprise that transgendered men do well at women’s sports. These former men were mediocre men, athletically-speaking. However, as women, they become “dominators!”  . . .

So if a man identifies as a woman, he is still a man.

American F-22 Raptor stealth fighters fire flares at Russian warplanes to drive them out of Syrian airspace controlled by the U.S-led coalition

UK Daily Mail 

"A pair of US warplanes intercepted two Russia jets over a part of Syria they were not supposed to be operating in, according to the Pentagon. 

"At one point during Wednesday's incident, the American F-22 Raptor stealth fighters deployed chaff and flares to convince the Russian Su-25s to leave the area, and one US pilot had to 'aggressively maneuver' to avoid a midair collision. 

"The Russian fighters had flown into airspace controlled by the US-led coalition that is fighting the Islamic State group in Syria, crossing onto the east side of the Euphrates River near Albu Kamal." . . .

When Obama was Commander-in-Chief of what he referred to as "my military", our adversaries freely did this sort of thing:

Russian SU-24 aircraft flew within 30 feet of a U.S. Navy ship USS Donald Cook in the Baltic Sea. (April 12, 2016)

And Iranian boats could get away with this:  

Rodman Turns On Kim Jong Un – The Rocket Man Will NOT Be Pleased

Clash Daily  "Dennis Rodman spoke about his friendship with Kim Jong Un with Stephen Colbert. Little Rocket Man might not let him back into North Korea after this…

. . . "Rodman has said that he could be useful to ease tensions between the United States and North Korea.

"Colbert had Rodman on The Late Show recently and introduced him as ‘five time NBA champion and possibly all that is standing between us and thermonuclear war with North Korea.‘ . . .

"Colbert asked Rodman, ‘What do you actually talk about with uh — and I don’t mean this insultingly — a madman, murderous dictator?‘

But Rodman did his best to defend his friendship with Kim.

‘I don’t really judge people, you know, by their color. I don’t judge where they come from. I just judge people where, you know, we’re all human beings. You know, throughout the day, we’re all human beings. It’s funny though that I don’t see how people can sit there and say that this person is a ‘madman.’ He probably is, but I didn’t see that. But he probably is,’ Rodman added . . .

. . .  "Well, how about this headline from the Guardian:

"Kim Jong-un should be prosecuted for crimes against humanity, say jurists

"From the article:

The jurists’ report is based on testimony from defectors and experts on the camps, believed to hold between 80,000 and 130,000 inmates. It cites evidence of systematic murder, including infanticide, and torture, persecution of Christians, rape, forced abortions, starvation and overwork leading to “countless deaths”.  Source: The Guardian.

Perhaps Dennis should wear this shirt instead:

Hillary Clinton And Huma Abedin Carted Off Muslim Files And Other Documents

The Political HEAT  "State allowed them to classify work-related items as ‘personal’

Faced with allegations of mishandling classified information, the State Department allowed Hillary Clinton and top aide Huma Abedin to take files of telephone calls, schedules and other work-related information under the claim they were “personal” and “unclassified, non-record” materials, according to newly released documents.

"The records newly obtained by the Washington watchdog Judicial Watch show that Abedin was allowed to take five boxes of “physical files” out of the State Department that include records described as “Muslim Engagement Documents.”

"And Clinton was allowed to take personal correspondence and gift binders, which could be relevant to allegations that donations were made to the family’s Clinton Foundation and Clinton Global Initiative in exchange for favorable policy decisions.

"Emails obtained by Judicial Watch showed Abedin doing favors for a Russia-connected group on behalf of the Clinton Foundation while Hillary Clinton was secretary of state.

"Abedin, who grew up in Saudi Arabia, worked for an organization founded by her family that promotes the kingdom’s strict Wahhabi interpretation of Islam. She was a member of the executive board of the Muslim Student Association, which was identified as a Muslim Brotherhood front group in a 1991 document introduced into evidence during the terror-financing trial of the Texas-based Holy Land Foundation

"Previous Judicial Watch investigations revealed numerous examples of Clinton’s schedule being broadcast via email through her unsecure, non-government server." . . . 

"The new information obtained by Judicial Watch includes a list of official and personal calls, and schedules that carry a special notation that the documents were released to Clinton on the condition that they not be made public. . . . The form was signed by Clarence N. Finney Jr., then-director of the Office of Correspondence and Records.Judicial Watch said it has a pending request to depose Finney in separate litigation concerning Clinton emails and the Benghazi terrorist attack.

Gonzo Overkill

Here’s Some Of The Most Outrageous College Classes Of 2017-18: Report

Weasel Zippers

"Don’t complain about the cost of paying back student loans. Via The College Fix:

A recent survey of course catalogs detailing classes taught at colleges nationwide this school year has revealed that current higher education trends include an emphasis on “queering” topics, teach that gender is a choice and a fluid construct, and argue that capitalism is evil.

That according to Young America’s Foundation, which recently published its annual survey of course catalogs, reviewing 2017-18 class offerings at more than 50 institutions, including the Ivy League, US News & World Report’s Top 10 liberal arts colleges, and other prominent schools.

The survey revealed a big push to “queer” topics, noting the University of Michigan offers “Rednecks, Queers, and Country Music,” Swarthmore hosts “Queering God: Feminist and Queer Theology” and “Queering the Bible,” Carleton College has “Queer Religion” and Middlebury offers “Queering Food.”

Academia also continues to argue that gender is not a biological mandate but rather some sort of spectrum, according to the survey’s results:

A topic du jour in this year’s report is gender, or lack thereof, perhaps. Northwestern University has a class titled “Beyond the Binary.” The school’s history department offers a medieval sexuality course on the “fluidity of sex and gender roles in an age before ‘sexual orientation.’”

In Indiana University’s Gender Studies program, students can enroll in “We’re All A Little Crazy: Gender, Madness, & Popular Culture,” which promises to discuss “resting b***h face” and “hails of ‘Yaaas, Queen!’” Wellesley College asks, “Beyond the social construct of gender, what are the actual differences between the sexes?” in its “What’s up with Men & Women?” course. Carleton College has a course to examine “how globalization and militarism are gendered.” Middlebury’s Gender, Sexuality, & Feminist Studies Department has a class asking “What is your gender and how do you know?”

Tillerson’s ‘No Preconditions’ For North Korea Means Things Are Worse Than We Thought

The Federalist

Rex Tillerson’s startling comments signal that Pyongyang is truly on the cusp of having a nuclear-capable intercontinental missile and that a military conflict might be fast approaching.

"U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson sent shockwaves through the foreign policy establishment this week when he suggested that the United States is prepared, for the first time, to come to the negotiating table with North Korea without any preconditions or promises from Pyongyang that it would halt, even if just temporarily, its nuclear program.

"Tillerson’s startling comments, which mark a major departure from U.S. policy and part significantly with President Trump’s views on the North Korea crisis, signal that Pyongyang is truly on the cusp of having a nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), and that a military conflict might be fast approaching.

"On Monday, an analysis was released by “38 North,” a U.S. website specializing in North Korea, indicating Pyongyang may be getting ready to test another nuclear weapon. The country’s last test, in early September, was estimated to have been 17 times more powerful than the bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima.

"The September test resulted in a fresh round of international sanctions, which, apparently, have done nothing to deter the hermit kingdom from moving ahead apace with its nuclear program. North Korea is similarly catapulting forward with its ICBM program, making steady progress and demonstrating this year that it now has the capability to reach the entire continental United States." . . .

Social Justice warriors, the early years

Jewish World Review