Big Oil Companies feel pressure from within

 Concern from employees and stockholders - Washington Post

Japanese Americans and Japan and more

This article on Japanese culture impressed the heck out of me - from Quora

How the World Really Works - interview

 

The “really” in the title of Vaclav Smil’s newest book, “How the World Really Works: The Science Behind How We Got Here and Where We’re Going,” is doing some heavy lifting. Implicit in the renowned energy scientist’s usage is the idea that most of us are uninformed or just plain wrong about the fundamentals of the global economy. He aims to correct that — to recenter materials rather than electronic flows of data as the bedrock of modern life — largely through examining what he calls the four pillars of modern civilization: cement, steel, plastics and ammonia. (The production and use of all four currently requires burning huge amounts of fossil carbon.) Which brings us back to that “really.” In the context of Smil’s book, which will be published May 10, the word is also a rebuke to those calling for rapid decarbonization in order to combat global warming. “I am not talking about what could be done,” says Smil, who is 78 and who counts Bill Gates among his many devotees. “I’m looking at the world as it is.”

Different Here

My experience in Bali in 92 was different. Elin, one year old Clay, and I took a couple of rooms in a place on the outskirts of Ubud. As I recall, we paid about five dollars a day for them. Ubud was like a village then. Not many cars or even many motorbikes. There were fields and lots. Now it's mostly filled in with shops, restaurants, places to stay, and the traffic is so heavy it's best to walk anywhere within thirty minutes. When we visit there now we can get to some nice rice field walks withing fifteen minutes walk from where we stay. There's a lot more happening now though the dances and gamelan music were here then. One big difference is how sophisticated people were. Back then a young staff guy, Wayan, would sit in my lap to talk to me, staff would watch a corny devout Hindu show in the afternoons, Wayan climbed a tall coconut tree to fetch me a coconut. I think if we lived in the sticks here we could still experience stuff like that, but not here now.

The Throng is Back

In the last two months, Bali has gone through a big change. Tourists are back. Planes are flying. Traffic is once again a consideration in thinking about where to go and when. I see customers in places that have long been empty. More people walking down the street. A couple of weeks ago there was a flood of non Muslim Indonesians who came here while all the Muslims from here were going there, going back home i Java and other islands for Eid al-Fitr, the end of the month long dawn to dusk Ramadan fasting. So lots of Chinese and other Indonesians were here as guests but lots of Muslims who live in Bali were gone including a lot of skilled workers. Businesses that catered to Muslims were closed. It was hard to find a plumber. The drivers are happy, the shopkeepers are happy. Don't see a great deal of change on the beach here. So it's got a ways to go to up to prior levels. But where we live in Sanur, it never gets crowded. Sleepy Sanur plods along. But we know there are big plans for it here and we can see some of the early stages yet. They'll turn us into Kuta if they can. Gaya may have other plans.

Going for 1.5+

  50/50 chance some scientists saying we attain that goal soon.

To All mothers

 Happy Mother's Day!

Thanks for bringing us here.

Love,

David

Now or Never

 UN IPCC scientists report

What's to Come I guess

 India's present heat wave

Glimmers of Hope

California is running more and more on clean energy, briefly getting up toward 100%. Aiming to be carbon free within 25 years. Here's a Bloomberg article on it last month. I just saw one that said they hit 100% for a while. Long way to go to sustain it. Keep it up California. Other states are slowly getting there too.  

Antidote to a Lullaby

This album cover with the links etc was posted on the What's New Blog recently featuring the song for Tassajara, Where the World Was Born. But it's mainly a bunch of nonZense so here it goes again. 

Here's a page on the DC music site for these old recordings now remastered. 

Here's the YouTube page for the album. It's also on Spotify, Apple Music, etc.

Suggest you check out Antidote to a Lullaby, a wake up song for son Kelly sung to him when he was five years old one morning. His response: It makes me sleepy.