What does that mean? The presidential popular vote doesn't "reflect the true public voice" either. Its a manipulated outcome based on who votes. And more eligible voters don't vote for any candidate than vote for either individual candidate.

Most of us have no basis for evaluating the quality of kids education. Not even our own kids. People are just repeating the messages they see in the media. So while I agree our education system is failing kids, I don't give my opinion much weight. It just means if someone came forward with some realistic plan to improve education I would listen.

The studies found that, for whatever reason, people in fact drive as much or more when working from home as when they commute to work. So more people working remotely will not reduce VMT or emissions.

If you prefer sitting in a traffic jam for an hour while the train would have got you to work in 15 minutes, that's your choice. You pay a pretty high price for your luxury accommodations.

The finance industry as a whole annually takes close to 4% of the accumulated retirement savings in the form of fees. In any case, as you point out, social security is not an investment program. I am not sure what "fees" you are talking about government taking. The reality is that the percentage of money paid in social security taxes that goes to pay benefits is close to 100%. Or will be when the "trust fund" runs out of money. Benefits are adjusted for inflation. And they are paid for the entire lifetime of the recipients.

There have been studies of remote workers that found they don't actually travel less. As I understand it, people use their commute to chain trips for other purposes. Without the commute, those trips get made individually. In many cases people actually drive more.

There is a reason central cities exist. They are very efficient. One of those efficiencies is lost when you rely on single occupancy vehicles instead of mass transit and walking.

Trains do a great job of comfortably moving large numbers of people quickly. The areas around stations develop densely to take advantage of that and that density supports the other efficiencies.

Which pretty much summarizes our problem. Millions of people can't fly to see sick relatives because they can't afford it. But people visiting a sick relative is more important than reducing emissions to prevent global warming. I think the idea that we are going to end global warming painlessly guarantees failure.

Yes, we can set a carbon tax high enough to shut down the airlines. But before the wealthy stop traveling by plane, every one else will have to stop heating their homes. Or driving to work unless someone wealthy is paying for it. The idea of course is that at some point in the future there will be a cheaper replacement for all our uses of carbon. But the reality is that won't happen using a carbon tax without economically crushing the average person.

So Bill Gates gardener will still get to work, but not the person working at Walmart. Or the people shopping at Walmart will have to pay much higher prices. The problem with a carbon tax is that it won't work, not simply that it is unjust. Because a huge portions of emissions ultimately go to benefit those who aren't that price conscious. When you look at it on a global scale you realize that that means limiting most people to third world lifestyles. Including most Americans.It isn't going to happen.

Uh,I made no point at all about cost of technology. Its pretty much irrelevant to what I said.

I applied it to your belief in "technology" as magic. All magic requires magicians with people who believe in their magical properties.

The problem is that the barriers to stopping climate change aren't technological. We have the technology. We just aren't willing to make the changes necessary. You believe that some technology will appear that eliminates that barrier. And I see no reason to believe that except technology is strong magic that can do anything.

.

No I am arguing the reality that no cars are being "retired" because a BEV was produced, purchased or used. The use of "retired" and "obsolete" is designed to disguise that reality. Almost no one drives a car to the junk yard, they are towed because they no longer run. And it doesn't matter whether there is another car is available or not.

The cars were going to be junked whether they were replaced with an EV or not. The two things are totally unrelated.

Ans its climate deniers like you that greenwash failing climate efforts that are the problem. Point the finger at "big oil" and then YOU don't have to do anything.Its their fault!

We have had wind, solar and battery storage and emissions are still increasing. There is no evidence those new technologies will ever actually lead to reductions in emissions because that requires people to not use fossil fuels. As of now, renewables are not meeting the increased demand for energy and there is no reason to think they will at some point in the future if we allow demand to freely increase.

If you doubt that, take a look at auto emissions over the past 50 years. There have been huge gains in the efficiency of ICE vehicles, the amount of fuel required to go 100 miles has been cut from as many as 20 gallons to as few as 2. But total emissions have continued to increase.

That wasn't my argument or anything close to it. And you apparently do think "technology" is magic since you believe by calling it "technology" it gains magic power to solve a problem. We need real solutions, not simply imagine they will appear.

Nepal's government hasn't been removed. Its parliament has been dissolved and an interim prime minister appointed. Elections in March. This is democracy working as intended. But as Thomas Jefferson said, "the tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots & tyrants. it is it's natural manure." That was not a call for violence, it was a recognition that violence was a necessary last resort.

Exactly right on both counts. Its time to stop studying climate change and start lowering emissions. And these kinds of finger pointing exercises are a complete waste ot time, money and energy.