Winding back Obama's Climate Change Policies

[Joe Blake]

I see in the news today that POTUS Trump is signing yet another executive order to wind back the Obama era climate policies, to start mining coal and drilling oil again. And I already see opponents girding their loins with their legal teams for a battle royale. The big question I have is, given the advances that renewable energy has made world wide, who in their right minds is going to invest their bucks, especially if, as appears is the case, this matter is headed for the courts.

If POTUS loses THIS one, I can foresee him attempting to dismantle the intransigent courts.

I'm not a great baseball fan, but having lost a legal challenge on his immigration policy, and having the Congress reject dismantling of "Obama care", would this be three strikes and you're out?

Interesting times indeed.

[Rob Beckers]

Hi Joe,

Like you, I've been following Trump's exploits with interest. It would all be a really entertaining soap opera, if the consequences weren't so serious.

Judging by comments from those that know more about US laws than I do it will take many years, if ever, before Trump's measures will have any effect. Still, it sends the entirely wrong signal by one of the largest countries on this planet. It will keep the coal guys happy (for a while), give climate-change deniers another reason to tell the world everyone else has it wrong, suppress green technology innovation, and delay what needs to be done by at least 4 years.

The funny thing is that as a country there is no future in going back to "dirty technology". The future, and a country's ability to add to its bottom line, is in smart, new technology that faces the challenges. There's no money in burning more coal, it just digs a deeper pit for a country to climb out of down the road.

Then again, failing miserably to get any real work done due to idiotic policy, the courts, and opposition will allow The Donald to blame everyone else but himself. That's populism: There's "us" the good and virtuous people trying to do the right thing, and "them" the elite that wants to keep a good thing going for themselves...

-RoB-

[Andy Rhody]

Hey Joe, I'm flattered that a guy down in the "Down Under" knows what's going on over here in the USA.

About two weeks ago on maybe a Saturday morning while he's taking a crap before breakfast, Trump tweets that Obama wire tapped Thump Tower. Meanwhile all people, congressmen, intelligent agencies, and everyone else in the whole world agrees that there is absolutely no evidence that there was any wire tap. Trump still insists for weeks that it's true.

Rob and Joe. Both of you and I all live in countries of the former "British Empire". Countries considered to be the models of modern democracy.

The guy (Trump) rallies the people by saying anything that they might want to hear like cutting regulations etc. and also by blasting the other candidate by calling her "Crooked Hillary over and over and B S ing the people. (Not to mention the Russian connection)

Don't get me wrong, I truly believe that the very best form of a government is a democracy but our last Presidential election is an example of how democracy can get scary. Remember, Hitler was elected with a democracy. I don't think that Trump is fundamentlly evil just like Hitler, but he is a nut. I'm more than embarrassed to be an American right now. I'm scared.

[Rob Beckers]

Andy, you hit the nail on the head: Democracy is the right to vote an idiot into power. Or, as is currently happening in the country my wife was born, democracy gives people the right to vote a dictator into power ... and then there is no more democracy...

Democracy is a great thing. It's not perfect, but short of a benign dictatorship it's the best form of government I can think of. It is also very fragile and lately that is coming more to people's attention: A population is surprisingly easy to manipulate, with fake news, with populist propaganda. It has no build-in protection to shield people from making bad decisions either.

Regarding Trump, all I can think is "this too will pass". Hopefully that will happen before too much damage is done.

-RoB-