Hot. But less so. Humid. But more so. Actually got rain yesterday in measurable amounts even if I didn’t measure it. Weather station is still not connecting with the display. Still, I know there was some rain as things were wet and later the afternoon rain messed up my plans for the day.
I did take a few things to my auctioneer. Not what I wanted to do, but I told him I’d bring some more, and I did. We didn’t do any settlements, but we did talk about bringing in more stuff. I’ll keep bringing it, he’ll keep selling it.
Doctor visit was uneventful. In order to take a closer look at my arteries, we’ll get some CT imaging, so he can see if there are any indications of a problem. This getting old business is not for the weak.
Today is more auction stuff, weather permitting. I’ve got one pickup, maybe two, and if it’s cool, I can sort and stack for next week’s drop off. I’ve got to do some grocery shopping too. Domestic bliss. There’s always something that needs doing.
Oh, and I should meet the new tenant and hand over keys. That will be great if we can manage to meet. It’ll be good to get rent again, and the deposit.
I’m still getting tax stuff together for my accountant, and doing bills and other desk work, so there will be stuff to do, even if it’s pouring down.
Gotta keep moving, gotta keep stacking.
n
Friday the 13th falls on the 15th this month. I hate when that happens.
I took The Child and a couple friends to the county fair a week and a half ago. The blue-ribbon rooster was no more physically attractive than my rooster, in terms of fancy ruff, colorful tail, and posture. I don’t know what other criteria are used in judging, but based solely on appearance I think mine might have taken the prize if I’d brought him in. His behavior is also practically perfect in terms of herding the hens, keeping an eye on people and critters who come anywhere near, raising the alarm if one of the hens gets of of the garden, making sure that the hens get first crack at the treats, and so on. He’s an annoying jerk and I’ve thought more than once of cooking him, but I really couldn’t ask for better. We’ll think about incubating some of the eggs, come Spring. (Certainly can’t rely on the hens to brood on them. They just poop the eggs out and then walk off to get something to eat. If I leave the eggs in the brooding bay, to see what will happen, the next hen to come along seems annoyed at the inconvenience of an egg being already there.)
The dad of one of The Child’s classmates had a prepper fail last week. They live in a small village on the outskirts of the mountains but near a city of about 15,000. He got the house rigged with an outdoor plug to take a generator cord but electrical power has been very reliable so he had put off getting a generator. Last week, power went out for up to twelve hours at a pop, several days in a row. Getting a generator at least good enough to keep the fridge or freezer cold, to run the furnace, and to charge up the battery-powered lights has now been bumped up on his list. Ditto for me; I’ve dawdled on getting a generator or rooftop solar because the power is reliable (in thirteen years, the only outages longer than a couple minutes were when a new house was being built and added to the lines, and when the substation caught fire) and because of other uncertainties.
20 kW for eight to twelve hours every night for a Jesus Truck. That’s almost double what my AC systems consumed running simultaneously at peak hot last weekend.
A Tonymobile is 13 kW.
Every household with an EV.
Why is anyone surprised?
Cars are going away for most of the population if things continue in the current direction.
Right now, Show Ya doesn’t care. That’s the electric company’s problem to him.
Yes, Y chromosomes. I see a lot of EVs supplanting the usual German Grocery Getters around here as of late, but the vehicles are always leased at those households, chasing the current fads.
Last week, I saw a BMW X5 broken down in the usual spot on the road where the go ‘splody between my house and Home Depot/Sam’s/H Mart. That’s a first in about a year, where I used to see one every couple of months. Something about that stretch of road.
“We picked it at the factory on our trip to Myrtle Beach!”
@Nick
“Maybe tax on road tires… with fines if you don’t replace them in a timely manner… or get rid of all the taxation period.”
There was a short sf story in the 60’s. One of those anti-consumer society things. Tires were studded and roads had matching grooves or bumps. The roads were changed to a new pattern periodically and the tires had to change or the vehicle would shake apart.
EVs are heavy, and the tires will be replaced more often, particularly on Jesus Trucks.
Most of the EV vehicles running around here don’t even have 30,000 miles on them at this point.
And most will be leased/turned in at three years.
The Jetta tires went through a lease in South Florida and then a couple of years in Germany before I replaced them a couple of weeks ago at 66,000 miles. The vehicle still passed inspection in Texas, however. Hecho en Mexico!
-gag- Tell me that you hate modernity, wealth finding its way to the common man, and all of the systems which make it possible, without using the words “I’m a scum-sucking commie loser”.
The other option is for bicycles to ride in traffic lanes, which they are legally allowed. In reality it just pisses drivers off, makes the drivers come as close as possible to the rider without hitting the bicycle, honk their horns, throw items. I have reported more than one vehicle operator to the police even though I am riding on a wide shoulder at the time and not in a traffic lane.
That is only a few riders. Most do obey traffic laws, I do. Most do not change lanes haphazardly. People only remember the ones that are irresponsible.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/byron-allen-makes-10-billion-bid-for-abc-other-disney-networks/ar-AA1gK9rz?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=1aae33c11be14e638029a1ef64ec87d1&ei=29
And so it begins.
Cooler this am, an actual hint of cool in the breeze. Nice sunrise too.
Everything is still wet though, so ambient = dewpoint, pretty much.
At least it’s not stormy.
n
The UAW must think the Dems are done at the levers of power, and want to get a big bump before they go…
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/unprecedented-uaw-strike-13000-workers-walk-job-detroit-automaker-plants
Their demands are ridiculous- as in subject to ridicule.
– after robbing pension funds blind, they want a return to trad pensions too.
They don’t just want the cookies, they want the jar, the kitchen, the cookie recipe, and to make sure no one else gets cookies. #nailinthecoffin #goodbyeUAW
n
I wasn’t aware that Allen Media owned The Weather Channel now.
I would bet that Nexstar ends up with ABC and the network-owned stations because of politics. They’re fully on board with the agenda, and ~ 20% of the stock is held by the “Big 3” — Vanguard, Black Rock, and State Street — who control a similar percentage of Disney.
The wild card with ABC would be The Gecko. The big ABC affiliate in Miami, which he bought from the Post-Graham family, is Buffett’s last TV station.
– it’s a bit like divorce, once you say the word out loud, it’s harder to avoid.
Disney should figure out where their focus needs to be, and dump the rest of the shite.
n
The entire company is “shite” right now.
Okay, the Fox Catalog is not “shite” at the moment. I can’t imagine Apple wanting anything else, but Tim isn’t going to give them $70 Billion.
Ignore the Apple/Nelson Peltz deal rumors. No one knows what Disney’s “intrinsic value” is worth until after Comcast sets their price for the remaining third of Hulu, which is worthless.
After the number is posted, I could see Apple making an offer for Fox and Pixar, the later being sentimental. Apple is not going to get into the theme park business.
Privacy in your car – including your sex life???
https://borepatch.blogspot.com/2023/09/data-privacy-in-cars-is-basically-non.html
Inside Elon Musk and Amber Heard’s toxic split: How couple’s ‘brutal’ whirlwind relationship went from loved-up dates to a ‘dark vortex’ that ended with him in ‘deep depression’ and his family despising her
– fellas, don’t put you d!ck in crazy. It ain’t worth it.
n
Ongoing fallout from the Fl school murders and the Coward of Broward.
https://www.securityinfowatch.com/education/article/53065013/school-security-professionals-assess-the-parkland-trial-and-verdict
– the courts have repeatedly found that cops have no “duty to protect” even if their motto is “to protect and serve”, and most people think that they do.
The State in this case tried to end run that by saying that the Coward wasn’t acting in his role as “generic popo, 1 each” but as a full time SRO was SPECIFICALLY there to “protect” and thus has a duty and failed in it.
I’m not a fan of ‘novel’ approaches to charging or inventing crimes where there were none before, but in this case (ha!) setting some precedent would be helpful.
Because if the court says the SRO doesn’t actually have to protect the kids, then districts should be free to make other arrangements, and PARENTS should be too.
Our Texas districts are in a slightly different situation as the popo belong to the school district. I would dearly like to get our new ISD Police Chief to go on record as to how he considers this question, and how his officers regard it.
SRO should not be a ‘retire in place’ or ‘running out the clock’ position.
– fwiw, I’d rather not have an SRO, but if you must, at least call him what he really is. Have them sign a pledge when they get the posting, and then hold them to it. And if none of t hem want the job under those explicit requirements, then let teachers and volunteers, and parents and staff be armed.
n
https://www.securityinfowatch.com/video-surveillance/news/53070608/california-case-ingnites-debate-about-sharing-of-lpr-data
– additional data about Flock and license plate readers. Since I first mentioned it here, even more have appeared around my neighborhood, and some are mounted on city owned traffic signals.
n
So I got this email from one of my local auctioneers. I don’t know which one. You’ll notice a complete lack of branding, location information, or anything that would identify the guy or his business. I don’t know who he expects to get to come to his going out of business sale… but maybe given his deficiencies, (and the atrocious spelling despite every browser having a built in spell checker is just one) being in business just isn’t for him.
I expect to see a lot of “consolidation” in the reselling field. It’s easy to buy, much harder to sell at a profit.
n
added- the email was sent using the auction management software, so the return email is just a generic noreply@auctionsoftwarecompany.con address
After I cancelled my SiriusXM sub the other day, I filled out the survey they sent. One question was if I would be ok with someone calling me. Sure, why not. They called a couple hours later. Not to discuss any of the issues, but to just offer me what I was originally trying to get when I renewed. I told them I’d think about it.
I think I’ll be fine without it. My wife surprised me and said we could probably let hers go as well when it’s time to renew. She has been using spotify more in the car lately.
I will need to spring for a stero upgrade for her 2013 Lexus IS250C at some point. No built-in nav, and no backup camera. About $800 total for parts and a good afternoon of my time. At least it will get her Apple car play too. I’ll do that project real soon now.
Huh, got my first 500 error in a while. comment was talking about selling guns. The text was gone when I went back to the page, so that’s different too.
n
(emphasis added.)
There’s your problem right there.
Yep. I was going to say the same but you spared me the effort.
@Greg
Did you squeeze in time for “Good Omens”?
I did. Binge watched on a rainy day while I processed rabbits. It was good. They lost a bit of Pratchett’s humor, however it was still enjoyable. I thought the acting was mildly forced in comparison to the first Good Omens, and that the end was manufactured. Still enjoyable, and a worthy effort. First was brilliant though, and notably better in my opinion.
“IRS shuts down pandemic tax credit after being overrun with fraud”
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2023/sep/14/irs-shuts-down-pandemic-tax-credit-after-being-ove/
“The IRS shut down a pandemic-era tax credit program on Thursday, saying it had become too much of a target for scammers. The Employee Retention Credit was designed to reward businesses that halted operations during the shutdowns but still paid their employees, keeping them off the rolls of the unemployed. But IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said the program has recently become a cesspool of fraud and had to be halted.”
I have no idea where my application stands, it has been filed.
It does sound like a Freudian slip.
Then again, in his defense, he (Mr. Self) looks to have graduated around the turn of the century. Standards are not what they were. A lot of my younger acquaintances use words that are almost correct.
Way back when I had to write monthly reports and review other peoples monthly reports, it drove me crazy, but it is the way of the modern world.
“Geothermal energy storage is cost competitive with lithium-ion batteries, pumped hydro: pilot”
https://www.utilitydive.com/news/sage-geosystems-geothermal-energy-storage-pilot/693494/
“While the pilot tested the technology for up to 18 hours of storage, Sage Geosystems is confident it could operate on a weekly cycle, or even provide seasonal storage, CEO Cindy Taff said.”
“Geothermal and energy storage company Sage Geosystems has completed a commercial pilot that indicates its new energy storage technology can provide 18 hours or more of storage capacity, and is cost-competitive with lithium-ion batteries and pumped storage hydropower, the company announced Tuesday.”
“The company estimates that the levelized cost of storage for its technology is between two and four cents per kilowatt hour, depending on duration, compared to pumped hydro’s six to 15 cents per kWh range, and lithium-ion batteries’ 25 to 30 cents per kWh, Cindy Taff, CEO of Sage Geosystems, said.”
Wild. A reverse fracking method. I wonder what the long term stability of the fracture in the rock formation will be ?
This is the first time that I have seen a cost for lithium-ion batteries in the eighteen wheeler trailers attached to the grid. Seems high plus only a ten year life of the batteries, if even that long.
Way back when I had to write monthly reports and review other peoples monthly reports, it drove me crazy, but it is the way of the modern world.
This is the way.
A computer virus or virus virus?
If it was the former, someone probably opened the wrong email or was surfing pr0n on company computers.
If you run any sort of web site, you need to have a valid backup plan. And a valid restore plan.
And if you have any data stored on your local computer that is vital to your business, the same applies. Along with off-site storage of your backups.
If your business computer dies / blows up / stolen / building fire / etc , will you be able to recover your business data?
There are folks here that know this, and practice what is preached – even for personal data (like all those family pix on your phone).
Even if you have a hosting plan – there have been hosting places that have borked all of their hosted data.
Nah, all you need to do is make sure to collect revenue before the expenses. If things go wrong, run away with the bank account and leave the customer and vendors hanging. Everyone wins! Everyone who matters, anyway.
xkcd: “Iceberg Efficiency”
https://xkcd.com/2829/
Randall Munroe is certifiably nuts.
Explained at:
https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/2829:_Iceberg_Efficiency
I’m still using Backblaze B2 on my Synology NAS for offsite backup. Incremental backup every night. If the NAS completely craps out, I can order a drive with all the files. You can keep the drive for a cost; otherwise, you pay just for to/back shipping.
I also sync it to our biz Dropbox account. That lets all the employees upload biz files to sync as a backup.
“UAW strikes at Big 3 automakers, targets select factories”
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/uaw-strikes-at-big-3-automakers-targets-select-factories-071225154.html
“The UAW is employing a ‘stand up’ strike strategy for maximum leverage against the automakers”
Ah, the old spot strike method. Difficult to manage against.
It is time for the UAW to go away. I wonder if Ford has the guts and the cash.
Ford and GM cannot continue to compete against union-less competitors like Toyota and Honda.
The dad of one of The Child’s classmates had a prepper fail last week. They live in a small village on the outskirts of the mountains but near a city of about 15,000. He got the house rigged with an outdoor plug to take a generator cord but electrical power has been very reliable so he had put off getting a generator. Last week, power went out for up to twelve hours at a pop, several days in a row. Getting a generator at least good enough to keep the fridge or freezer cold, to run the furnace, and to charge up the battery-powered lights has now been bumped up on his list. Ditto for me; I’ve dawdled on getting a generator or rooftop solar because the power is reliable (in thirteen years, the only outages longer than a couple minutes were when a new house was being built and added to the lines, and when the substation caught fire) and because of other uncertainties.
I am incredibly happy with my 38 kW liquid cooled Generac whole house generator that runs on natural gas. It just works (C). Copyright phrase by Jerry Pournelle.
It cost me $25K to get purchased and get installed. I pay another $49 per month for them to monitor, test, and maintain the generator each month. Well worth the peace of mind.
We have used it many times. I don’t even know when it is running since it is so quiet.
“Socialist Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson Wants to Open Taxpayer-Funded City-Owned Grocery Stores”
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/09/chicago-mayor-brandon-johnson-wants-open-taxpayer-funded/
I can see it now, a candy bar will be $10 and locked up until payment.
“Immigrant Population Surges to 46 Million Under Biden.”
https://thenationalpulse.com/2023/09/15/immigrant-population-surges-to-46-million-under-biden/
“U.S. Census Bureau statistics show the immigrant population in the United States now stands at some 46 million, having increased dramatically since Joe Biden replaced Donald Trump as President.”
I wonder how many of them are on some sort of welfare ?
Hat tip to:
https://thelibertydaily.com/
Randall Munroe got it backward. Icebergs above the water aren’t much of a hazard because any damage will be above the waterline. What we want for efficient icebergs is 99% submersion. Have just a tiny nub above water, luring the captains into complacency. And then we strike!
They are lying. Just like they lie about almost everything else. For years and years it’s been “10 million illegals” running around, since the mid-80’s.
From what I see, and I don’t get out a lot, let’s go with 200 million. Minimum. Currently. At the Moment.
I mean, come on, if they are admitting to 46 million now, after years of “just 10 million”, get real.
For the illegals? 100%. That’s why they came here.
I have no problem with immigrants. My grandparents were immigrants. My father’s father stowed away (so he once told me) as a child on a ship from Greece. I’d say he was an “illegal immigrant”, except there weren’t many immigration laws back then. He received his citizenship papers – and his honorable discharge from the US Army – in a single ceremony in 1919, after spending some time driving a truck in France.
I’m really a sort-of “open borders” guy, except that open borders are ABSOLUTELY INCOMPATIBLE with a welfare state. And since we have a welfare state, we can’t have open borders, and we NEED to deport all the illegal immigrants.
Homeowner shoots intruder, and he responds, ‘You’re gonna have to kill me.’ So homeowner shoots him again, police say.
https://www.theblaze.com/news/homeowner-shoots-intruder-twice-fayette
words fail
Uh, could shut down the welfare the illegals get. Show a birth certificate to get any welfare. Do so for anyone. Even the white trash wandering around. But doing that will cause our dusky brethren, aka OFE, to pitch a fit and burn down the cities where they are the majority. Because it slides right into the it’s raysiss to show ID to vote BS.
Oh. If the aliens are so damn great, why don’t they stay home and be great there?
That’s hate speech!
But, so long as we’re throwing around hate speech, try this on for size:
I am no longer willing to acknowledge that black Africans without visible admixture from other races are members of the same subspecies as I. Going by the rather fuzzy conventional definition, they are members of the same species because fertile offspring are readily produced, but the typical behavioral, psychological, and physical differences are great enough to warrant distinction as a different subspecies. I posited this as a joke some years ago, stating that black Africans are a still-extant ancestor species and that modern humans resulted from adding Neanderthal … but I no longer think that it’s a joke.
No, it will be like K Mart near the end — all of the suppliers demanded cash payment on delivery and the stores had nothing to sell.
I remember Chicago had grocery stores downtown pre-pandemic … and pre-Mayor Beetlejuice.
The Democrat party running Chicago is the same party that has run it and the state for years.
They fully support open borders and spending billions on supporting the alien invaders–betting that they are future Democrat voters–as long as they can keep the taxpayers paying for it without compromising their own scam, which is keeping firmly in control while drawing obscene salaries for doing eff-all and retiring to even more obscene pensions that have already made the city and state de facto bankrupt.
After decades of controlling the public education system (but not sending their own kids there) they have consistently produced voters that are less intelligent than the average farm animal.
The absolute proof is the public subsidy of $200, $300 or more per night to house alien invaders while thousands of die-hard (and yeah, they’re going to die hard) Democrat voters live like sheep in slums. Those people are too stupid to march on City Hall and demand that if anyone is going to get those hotel rooms paid for by the city it is them, and the alien invaders can have the slums.
The rich are starting to flee the cities like Chicago. They are largely the creators of what they are fleeing, and should be met with tar and feathers and stones wherever they go, for they are also less intelligent than the average farm animal, learned nothing, and will spend their money to support the same failed policies that have never worked.
When the cities burn the survivors will try to flee. Hopefully the rest of the citizens will act quickly and decisively to drop the bridges and overpasses and make the highways unusable so that it is only necessary contain the foot traffic.
I doubt that will happen the first time. Probably not the second.
paul says:
Your proposal is acceptable. But probably impossible.
They are lying. Just like they lie about almost everything else. For years and years it’s been “10 million illegals” running around, since the mid-80’s.
From what I see, and I don’t get out a lot, let’s go with 200 million. Minimum. Currently. At the Moment.
I mean, come on, if they are admitting to 46 million now, after years of “just 10 million”, get real.
Yeah, the immigrant population in the USA consists of two groups: legals and illegals. I posit that the illegal population is at least 2/3rds of that 46 million. That would be 30 million of illegals.
Several of my greatgrandparents were legal immigrants around 1900 or so. And then one of my great*20 grandparent was a legal immigrant in 1690 or so as an indentured servant from Ireland. Apparently he was sold on the docks to a family in Pennsylvania by the Ship’s Captain.
Uh, could shut down the welfare the illegals get. Show a birth certificate to get any welfare. Do so for anyone. Even the white trash wandering around. But doing that will cause our dusky brethren, aka OFE, to pitch a fit and burn down the cities where they are the majority. Because it slides right into the it’s raysiss to show ID to vote BS.
All of the illegals have fake Social Security cards. It is how they get jobs. I suspect that they could get fake birth certificates just as easily.
My wife was born in Japan on a USA Army Base in 1958 to an USA Army sergeant operating room nurse and corpsman. Her birth certificate original was filed in the USA Embassy in Tokyo. That embassy burned down in 1970 or so. Apparently now there are ten+ million people claiming to have their birth certificates burned up there. So, no birth certificates are accepted from Japan in that 1945 to 1970 time period. We went through hell and high water getting her a USA birth certificate twenty+ years ago.
“Socialist Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson Wants to Open Taxpayer-Funded City-Owned Grocery Stores”
Post-Katrina a black New Orleans entrepreneur opened a grocery in the heart of the inner city.
He had to close it down not so many years later after those to whom he was “giving back” stole him blind.
I remember that story, or one very similar. IIRC, the slant of the article (essay, really) was that the Bush Administration wasn’t doing enough to restore New Orleans to its former glory and so crime was running rampant and so he couldn’t keep his store open. I don’t recall the man making any such claim; that was the
journalisteditorialist speaking.(All statements above should be viewed skeptically. That was over ten years ago and memories blur, especially when there was an endless series of screeds on similar topics.)
My wife was born in Taipei, and her birth certificate is on file at the American Embassy.
If things get sporty across the Strait, my guess is that birth certificates from post-War Taiwan will not be accepted. Fortunately, my wife’s mother eventually got a State Department-issued certificate.
Harry Anderson moved back to New Orleans after “Dave’s World” ended and ran a magic club/store until Katrina hit. After Katrina, the city government proved to be such an obstacle to getting the tourism trade back up and running that Anderson gave up and moved to North Carolina, where he died fairly young at 65.
Legal shrooms? What? Oregon didn’t already have enough problems?
https://apnews.com/article/psilocybin-oregon-magic-mushrooms-psychedelics-therapy-legal-6e5389b090b0c50d5c90d9574b63eca5
I knew a chef who left NO after Katrina, moved to the Midwest, and started a small restaurant in a small town. Very successful and got awards. Small venue, great food. A couple years later he moved to a larger small town. I dined there twice–it was not the same, but it was improving. I ordered a turducken for a large Thanksgiving gathering and it was very good.
Then suddenly he was gone from his own restaurant and started a small private catering company. It became obvious that he had taken on one or more investors, had some disagreement, lost control, and lost not only the business but the name. It also became obvious that there was no one remaining in the kitchen that could produce the same dishes at his level, and the place folded within a year.
My undergrad alma matter has Alabama at home in Raymond James Stadium tomorrow.
The spread is 32 points, but 14 years ago, in an eerily similar scenario early in the season, the team went to Tallahassee as an unranked “patsy” opponent and humiliated Saint Bobby on the precipice of decline at home, beating the then #18 team in the polls using a freshman at quarterback, setting in motion the chain of events which led to Jimbo’s current tenure in College Station.
Cue the Hoff …
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9gb30mGe4k
Hopefully the rest of the citizens will act quickly and decisively to drop the bridges and overpasses and make the highways unusable
I live within 2 miles of the second ring road, and the most logical barrier to exit. If you haven’t gamed out a couple of GTFOD (Get Out of Dodge) scenarios, you aren’t doing it right. I can follow a creek to the freeway, and there has to be a culvert, but I can’t see it from publicly accessible land… SO I have to be on the right side when the fence goes up. It’s why I recommend having some preps in a storage unit outside any perimeter that is likely to be established.
Sound like crazy talk? Ask the survivors of the Warsaw Ghetto… anything that’s happened before can happen again.
n
I live within 2 miles of the second ring road, and the most logical barrier to exit. If you haven’t gamed out a couple of GTFOD (Get Out of Dodge) scenarios, you aren’t doing it right. I can follow a creek to the freeway, and there has to be a culvert, but I can’t see it from publicly accessible land… SO I have to be on the right side when the fence goes up. It’s why I recommend having some preps in a storage unit outside any perimeter that is likely to be established.
“Holding Their Own: A Story of Survival” by Joe Nobody
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/061556965X?tag=ttgnet-20/
“This first book of the Holding Their Own series, A Story of Survival, is set in the near future, when the world is burdened by the second Great Depression. The United States, already weakened by internal strife, becomes the target of an international terror plot. A series of attacks results in thousands of casualties and disables the country’s core infrastructure. The combination of economic hardship and the staggering blow of the terror attacks results in a collapse of the government.”
The book starts in Houston when Medicare and Medicaid have not paid their hospital bills in several months. That causes all of the Hospitals across the USA to fail and layoff their employees. The financial rot spreads like wildfire. The protagonist and his wife end up bugging out for West Texas.
Several months? Cut the Medicare/Medicaid payments and the hospitals wouldn’t last through the end of the first week.
“Biden’s Climate Agenda Launches Him Head-First Into A Political Maelstrom”
https://dailycallernewsfoundation.org/2023/09/15/bidens-climate-agenda-launches-him-head-first-into-a-political-maelstrom/
“The administration is aiming for EVs to make up 50% of all new car sales by 2030, and the NHTSA and EPA regulations could effectively force manufacturers to push that figure to 67% starting in model year 2o32. The transition away from internal combustion engine vehicles is a key pillar of Biden’s goal to have the U.S. economy reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Meanwhile, the UAW and management from the “Big Three” could not come to terms before the established deadline, which came and went late Thursday night. UAW leadership expressed concerns that because EVs require fewer hands to assemble, their prospective market dominance could result in thousands of its workers losing their jobs in the absence of strong protections against such an outcome, according to E&E News.
UAW President Shawn Fain has slammed the administration for “actively funding the race to the bottom with billions in public money” and the “poverty-level” wages that Biden’s EV policies may bring about for UAW’s workers.”
Several months? Cut the Medicare/Medicaid payments and the hospitals wouldn’t last through the end of the first week.
Federal Bankruptcy courts can delay the inevitable for several months.
Regarding SSNs: I don’t understand why the US hasn’t fixed them. A 9-digit number is just too small, especially when part of it us predictable. It’s trivial to guess a valid SSN, and not a lot harder to get the SSN belonging to a specific name.
Anyway, the practice of using SSNs as identification is really dumb. Even dumber is the practice of just checking the last four digits.