Innovations In The Climate Crisis – CCS

Posted on November 10, 2021 by Paul Deaton

I viewed the S&P Global Market Intelligence discussion between reporter Taylor Kuykendall and Former U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz on Nov. 8. The thirty minute video is worth viewing to hear Moniz on major technologies and technological developments that will help prevent and mitigate the effects of global warming on humans.

Dr. Moniz answered the question I posted in the YouTube chat: “Regarding CCS (carbon capture and sequestration), how important is it to leave sequestered carbon in the ground? If a market for CO2 were developed, would there be an interest in digging it back up?”

He sort of laughed at the idea of “digging it up” as something that would not be done, yet gave an answer I hadn’t expected. There may be engineering applications to use captured CO2 in order to address our goal of net zero emissions by 2050, rather than burying it in geologically stable underground rock formations. This has been a point of contention with opponents to the Summit project.

Summit Carbon Solutions, an Iowa company, has proposed construction of a pipeline to transport liquefied CO2 captured from ethanol plants and other Iowa industrial producers to North Dakota for sequestration. The Iowa Utilities Board approved public hearings in the 30 counties the proposed pipeline would cross. One of the sticking points between activists who oppose the pipeline and the company was about Summit making a written commitment to leave any sequestered carbon in the ground permanently. CEO Bruce Rastetter indicated they would not make such a commitment because markets may be found for captured CO2. Moniz’ comments yesterday indicated such markets are under study and may be developed in order to address the climate crisis.

Is carbon capture and sequestration technology a hero that will help society reach net zero emissions by 2050, or is it a villain that will violate landowner rights and cause more pollution than it prevents? Fossil fuels should be left in the ground.

The highlight of Moniz’ interview for me was that advocates against the Summit Project (or the similar Navigator CO2 Ventures project) have a lack of big picture information about addressing the climate crisis using carbon capture and sequestration technologies. The information has not been readily available.

Ed Fallon of Bold Iowa isn’t perfect. However, he is a veteran of multiple pipeline fights. In a Sept. 23 blog post he outlined his concerns about the Summit project. He claimed Summit plans to use sequestered CO2 for “fracking” instead of sequestering it in the ground. He also claimed Summit wasn’t being transparent about their intentions. Summit denies these claims. Fallon is the right person to engage in a pipeline fight, yet his blog post lacked a depth of understanding of CCS beyond his immediate concerns. Ed could use more information as could we all.

Over the coming weeks, I intend to remedy the lack of accessible information about carbon capture and sequestration. In a series of articles, I will explain what it is, evaluate whether the Summit and Navigator projects are boondoggles designed to skim taxpayer money for the richest Americans, and what plans exist for implementing CCS as a solution to the climate crisis. Hopefully, with a better understanding of the technology and its proposed applications, advocates for and against it will have a better base of information to address the climate crisis. Stay tuned.

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Vilsack: Infrastructure Bill An “Opportunity For Wealth That Stays In Rural Communities”

Posted on November 9, 2021 by Trish Nelson

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack released the following statement following passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act by the U.S. Congress. The bill will now go to President Biden for his signature.

“This is a transformative, historic investment for America as President Biden delivers on his promise to rebuild the physical infrastructure of our country, grow the economy for decades to come, create good-paying, union jobs, and better position us to compete in a global economy.

“As we make significant progress in closing the digital divide and delivering 21st-century broadband, farmers will have access to real-time information and new technologies needed to maintain their competitive edge, small businesses will be able to develop their markets, and rural communities can become better connected to jobs, telemedicine, and distance learning.

“As we repair crumbling roads and bridges and make much-needed investments in our ports, waterways, and rail transit, we will connect agriculture and rural communities to more markets and more economic opportunity. Upgraded power infrastructure, environmental remediation, and clean and safe drinking water will power and revitalize communities historically left behind.

“As we invest in green infrastructure, we will preserve our lands and natural resources and the outdoor recreation opportunities they provide for so many Americans. At the same time, we will respond to the climate crisis by increasing community resiliency and conducting critical work on our farms and in our forests to mitigate wildfires, support farmers and ranchers grappling with drought, and improve watersheds and water supply in the West.

“This is a tremendous opportunity to build up rural America with wealth that stays in rural communities, jobs you can raise a middle-class family on, and the ability to compete around the world. I’m thankful to those in Congress who drove this bipartisan legislation over the finish line, and to President Biden for his leadership for America’s working families. Now, let’s get to work and see to it that the benefits of modern infrastructure reach every corner of country.”

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Help Get Build Back Better Over The Finish Line

Posted on November 8, 2021 by Trish Nelson


Bottom line – Iowans if you are in Cindy Axne’s district tell her thank you for working hard to get Build Back Better over the finish line and tell her to keep it up. If you are in Feenstra’s, Miller-Meeks’ or Hinson’s districts, demand that they vote yes on BBB and remind them how popular the provisions are. See below for more details.  When you contact them know that it is just as  important to send your letter to the editor of your local paper.  

Here is this week’s action alert from Indivisible – To join Indivisible Iowa click here

On Friday the House passed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework (BIF) and took a step towards passage of the Build Back Better Act (BBB).

These two bills together make up the Biden economic agenda. At Indivisible, we’ve been focused on the passage of Build Back Better, because it includes our key priorities – from climate investments to child care and paid leave to prescription drug reform.

Until now, these two bills have been linked, for a simple reason: progressives care more about Build Back Better, and conservatives care more about the BIF. For the last two months, progressives have acted as a bloc to withhold their votes from the infrastructure package in order to protect against the danger that conservatives simply walk away from Build Back Better.

This standoff has succeeded in bringing conservative democrats to the table to hammer out the framework and details of a Build Back Better package. This in itself was a victory; earlier in the fall, Senator Manchin was openly calling for a “strategic pause” until next year on Build Back Better. The organizing of the progressive caucus prevented that from happening, and forced conservatives to actually negotiate. We’ve made a ton of progress in the last two months – enough to get to a House bill with legislative text this week.

Yesterday, we hoped to pass both the BIF and BBB together out of the House. But a last-minute revolt by a small group of conservative holdouts — Reps. Ed Case (HI-01), Jared Golden (ME-02), Stephanie Murphy (FL-07), Kathleen Rice (NY-04), Kurt Schrader (OR-05), and Abigail Spanberger (VA-07) — derailed that plan. Despite having scores from the Joint Tax Committee and the White House, the conservatives refused to vote on the bill without first receiving a formal score (ie, estimate of its impact on the federal budget) from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) — a score that wouldn’t be ready until next week.

After a day of fraught, intense negotiations, progressives led by Rep. Jayapal made the decision to accept a commitment from these conservative holdout Democrats that they’d vote for Build Back Better once the CBO score was received, and move forward with passing the BIF in the meantime. This deal gave President Biden a win while securing the public commitments of the holdouts on the current version.

Now let’s be real: commitments on paper, or at a press conference, are better than no commitments at all. But they’re not nearly as ironclad a guarantee as a vote. The progressives who took this deal are recognizing the urgent need to give President Biden a win and taking a leap of faith. It’s now up to the conservative democrats, Democratic leadership, and President Biden to deliver. And we’re going to do everything we can to make sure they uphold their end of the bargain.

It’s also important to note that other progressives, including fellow champions and friends of ours, held to their original strategy and voted no on the BIF. This was a courageous stance, and one that we honor and support.

Let’s also be clear about one more thing: the only reason we’re in this position at all is because literally zero members of the Republican party are willing to vote for climate action, healthcare, childcare, paid leave, affordable housing, or prescription drug reform. These are wildly popular policies, things their own voters also want – and they’re trying to kill it all.

So here’s the short version of what’s happened: at this point, all but one member of the House (Rep. Golden) has committed to vote for Build Back Better — that’s enough votes for passage. President Biden has repeatedly committed that he’ll get it across the finish line. Here at Indivisible, we ultimately care about what people do, not what they say. So we’re going to be throwing everything we’ve got at making sure they uphold their word and pass this bill into law. Our families, our communities, and our planet depend on it.

So, this is what we need you to do right now (you can connect to your representatives via the United States Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121):

  1. If your representative is one of the conservative Democrats, hold them to their word and demand that they vote yes on the Build Back Better Act when it comes to the floor. 
  2. If your representative is one of the Democrats working hard to get Build Back Better over the finish line, thank them and tell them to keep it up.
  3. If your representative is a Republican, remind them that the provisions in the Build Back Better Act are wildly popular across bipartisan lines — and that as a constituent, you demand that they vote yes.

We know this has been a long fight, and it’s felt like just one of many long fights over a long year. We know how ready you are for a victory (us too). Thank you for staying with us, and pushing on against every obstacle we’ve faced so far. What we can accomplish together in the coming days will help get us one step closer to the finish line.

In Solidarity,
Leah Greenberg
Co-Executive Director

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Wealth Inequality Has Spiraled Out Of Control

Posted on November 7, 2021 by Dave Bradley

Once again, Former Secretary of Labor and Economics Professor Robert Reich discusses what may be the biggest threat to our democracy. (12 minutes)

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Sunday Funday: Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is? Edition

Posted on November 7, 2021 by Dave Bradley

Today’s big question (3:18)

It is one hour earlier than you think it is.

A tremendous jobs report Friday. Plus revisions to the previous 2 months show that the Biden Administration is doing its job. By the end of today, however, cable news media led by Fox will turn this tremendous news into a liability for Biden.

Trivia: The Biden Administration has produced twice as many jobs in eight months than the last three Republican administrations combined (Bush I, Bush II and Trump).

A) Perhaps the best news of the week was that what group of Americans will be allowed to be vaxxed beginning immediately?

B) Today in history, November 7, 1962, what politician gave what he claimed was his last press conference after losing the race for governor of California saying “You won’t have {me} to kick around anymore”?

C) 15 minutes of fame: Jennifer Ryan of Frisco, Texas proved a bad predictor when her statement “I won’t go to what because I have white skin, blond hair, and a great job with a great future.”?

D) In the Georgia trial of three white men accused of killing a black man who was out jogging, the jury that was selected had what racial composition?

E) We will throw in some trivia about time today. Time is often thought of as the fourth what?

F) To begin the COP26 summit in Glasgow, Scotland, President Biden apologized for what?

G) Good news on the Covid front this week as Pfizer and Merck both announced great trial news for anti-covid medications in the form of a what?

H) Measuring time usually takes place using what two methods? {hint: think more than a day and less than a day}

I) In a major step forward, November 7, 1989, L. Douglas Wilder was elected as the first what?

 J) What celebrity walked away from a $9 million payday when he refused to get vaccinated for a movie he was in?

K) A crowd of QAnon followers gathered in Dallas’ Dealy Plaza Tuesday waiting for what deceased person to return to lead them?

L) In West Liberty, Iowa the city elected a city council that is what?

M) Similarly on Waterloo, Iowa the city elected a council and a mayor that is what?

N) In the John Deere strike a contract was voted on last week. How did the vote turn out?

O) We often hear of the term ‘light year.’ A light year is not a measure of time, but rather a measure of what?

P) Despite claims to the contrary earlier in the year, what NFL star has to take a seat on the bench as he was unvaccinated and contracted Covid-19?

Q) Southwest Airlines is investigating one of their pilots who used what MAGA coded phrase over the planes loud speaker system?

R) Food will most likely get more expensive as a shortage of what agricultural staple is being reported?

S) What 36 year congressman from Iowa died last week at age 101?

T) Next Thursday will mark the 103rd anniversary of the end of what war?

When stupidity is considered patriotic it is unsafe to be intelligent. – Isaac Asimov

Answers:

A) children ages 5-11. Expect approval for children under 5 to be coming soon!

B) “You won’t have NIXON to kick around anymore.” As usual, he lied.

C) Jail – she was sentenced to 2 months in jail

D) 11 white, 1 black

E) dimension – length, height width and time

F) Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris accords

G) pill. Both when given at onset of symptoms greatly lesses the effects of the virus by interfering in its replication.

H) A calendar and a clock

I) African-American governor when he was elected in Virginia.

J) Ice Cube

K) John F. Kennedy, Jr.

L) Majority Latino. Two new Latinos joined 2 Latino holdovers

M) majority black – the mayor was reelected to his 4th term

N) Rejected by 55% of the union

O) distance – the distance light can travel in a year – about 5.88 trillion miles

P) Green Bay QB Aaron Rodgers

Q) “let’s Go Brandon” This phrase is coded for “Fuck Joe Biden” I guess they think we aren’t smart enough to figure it out.

R) fertilizers

S) Neal Smith

T) World War I or as it was known at the time “The War to end All Wars”

Republicans Name Manchin Employee of the Month. – Andy Borowitz

Posted in #nevertrump, Covid-19, Humor | Comments Off on Sunday Funday: Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is? Edition

Covid Kim Taking Undeserved Credit

Posted on November 6, 2021 by Dave Bradley

This seems to be a recurring theme in the Republican Party. Democrats do the hard work of drafting and passing legislation over the near unanimous opposition from Republicans. Then when programs are put in place, Republicans jump in front of the parade and claim credit.

We have seen Miller-Meeks and Hinson both do this earlier this year. Now Reynolds joins the undeserved credit taking crowd. From our friends at Progress Iowa who are great at calling out the continuing Republican hypocrisy:

Progress Iowa <press@progressiowa.org>

Contact: Ivy Beckenholdt, press@progressiowa.org

DISHONEST: Reynolds Piles On One Lie After Another

Taking credit for President Biden & Rep. Axne’s work to support childcare is downright dishonest

Des Moines, Iowa — Progress Iowa executive director Matt Sinovic issued the following statement in response to the investments in child care announced today by Gov. Reynolds, that are only possible because of federal programs that she opposed:

“The Governor is being downright dishonest. Period.”

“Cindy Axne has fought every day to support our families and children. Meanwhile Reynolds opposed the American Rescue Plan, but now wants to take credit for their hard work.”

“The Governor should be ashamed, give credit where it’s due, and every story written about this program should make note of her opposition, as well as who is actually responsible.”

In the email Progress Iowa includes the governor’s release. I will forego that here. I refuse to give her unwarranted publicity.

########################################

Another email that just came in from Progress Iowa about Reynolds:

STATEMENT: Iowans want to be safe while Reynolds plays politics

As we talk about Reynolds let me add that it was shameful of Covid Kim and the Iowa legislature to use the special session to pass a law to try to stop vaccination mandates in Iowa by the federal government and to pay unemployment insurance to those who quit their jobs for being vaccinated.

Call me old fashioned, but isn’t the governor’s job to protect the public health? And not make public health worse and the virus healthy? Seems like a simple concept. And isn’t the purpose of unemployment insurance to help those who lose their job due to things they can’t control such as layoffs. 

I have been lectured more than once by a Republican who is more than willing to tell me that UI is NOT MEANT FOR PEOPLE WHO QUIT THEIR JOBS. Seems like this is a really bad precedent to set. Paying UI to people who quit or lose their job for failure to follow orders.

They can try to sell it as freedom, but freedom don’t mean much when you are dead.  Plus what about others you infect, what about their freedom? 

Somebody sure should have left a “How To Governor For Dummies” for Covid Kim to follow.

Oh and if you are looking for a religious exemption, it should be something that you have done all your life not just because Saint Tucker Carlson told you to.

Posted in 2022 Election campaign, Covid-19, Kim Reynolds, Republican hypocrisy | Tagged | Comments Off on Covid Kim Taking Undeserved Credit

Dog Whistles, CRT And Grassley

Posted on November 6, 2021 by Dave Bradley

Isn’t one of these guys trying to split the country with his ‘Big Lie’?

Earlier this week the media world was all agog over the Virginia gubernatorial race. A Republican won. This was in character for Virginia. For decades the party out of power in DC has been the winner in the Virgina governor’s race. Yet the seers in the media spread out the tea leaves to read the deep, meta reasons for this fairly common occurrence.

“Certainly, it must be that the Democrats are in disarray in Washington” they seemed to chortle in unison. “Democrats can’t govern” they continued totally forgetting the low unemployment, the checks that helped us all through some bleak times earlier in the year, climate policy coming together and much, much more. Not a mention that every single Republican voted against every initiative that Democrats bring up. Nor a mention that McConnell continues to use the filibuster to stop any business in the senate.

The other thing that the media seemed to miss is the racial dog whistle that Republican Youngkin used as one of his pivotal issues. Critical Race Theory has become this year’s and no doubt next year’s Republican way of stoking the racial divide in this country without using the actual words that have become verboten in society.

Even though Critical Race Theory is taught nowhere in this country except a few Ivy League law schools, it has become the go-to code word for Republicans who want to turn up the racial heat. If you have never heard of this before, let’s go back to the late Republican strategist Lee Atwater who explained the concept of ‘code words’ in an anonymous interview he gave before his death. Atwater is speaking to Political Scientist Alexander P. Lamis:   

Atwater: As to the whole Southern strategy that Harry S. Dent, Sr. and others put together in 1968, opposition to the Voting Rights Act would have been a central part of keeping the South. Now you don’t have to do that. All that you need to do to keep the South is for Reagan to run in place on the issues that he’s campaigned on since 1964, and that’s fiscal conservatism, balancing the budget, cut taxes, you know, the whole cluster. 

Questioner: But the fact is, isn’t it, that Reagan does get to the Wallace voter and to the racist side of the Wallace voter by doing away with legal services, by cutting down on food stamps? 

Atwater: Y’all don’t quote me on this. You start out in 1954 by saying, “N*****, n*****, n*****”. By 1968 you can’t say “n*****”—that hurts you. Backfires. So you say stuff like forced busing, states’ rights and all that stuff. You’re getting so abstract now [that] you’re talking about cutting taxes, and all these things you’re talking about are totally economic things and a byproduct of them is [that] blacks get hurt worse than whites. And subconsciously maybe that is part of it. I’m not saying that. But I’m saying that if it is getting that abstract, and that coded, that we are doing away with the racial problem one way or the other. You follow me—because obviously sitting around saying, “We want to cut this”, is much more abstract than even the busing thing, and a hell of a lot more abstract than “N*****, n*****”. So, any way you look at it, race is coming on the back-burner.[16] 

What Atwater spoke of in supposed secrecy nearly 40 years ago is still in play today. It was at the core of the Trump campaign. It gets mixed in many Republican campaigns. Blacks are not the only targets of the code word assaults. Latinos have also been targets for a long time.

Over the years the code words or code phrases have changed but the effect is the same – to remind the Republican core that if they don’t stay together then the Democrats will put minorities in charge.

Republicans are already trotting out their strategic messaging for next year. All candidates are no doubt expected to join in the assault, even old senators whose years of service should make him above such scuzzy crap. Yep, Chuck Grassley joined in the other day when he tweeted: 

Welcome 2 Pres Biden’s America where 10,000 pounds of fentanyl hv been seized by Customs & Border patrol so far this fiscal yr which is enough to kill over 2 billion ppl or more than 1/4 of the world’s population

— ChuckGrassley (@ChuckGrassley) November 1, 2021  

Most folks probably thought Grassley was making a statement about the drugs coming in to the country.  But I tend to look at things a bit differently. The fact that 10,000 pounds of fentanyl was captured I would think would be something to be happy about for a guy like Grassley. What did he want, those drugs to get by the border? Is that what Grassley wanted? Can’t say for sure, but I hope not.

What Grassley was doing was using drugs at the border as a code against Latinos coming to our Southern border. Chuck just doing his part in the dog whistle attack. Seems like Iowa Republicans are charged with scaring up fear of Latinos as their role in the dog whistle attacks. That would explain Covid Kim’s strange deployment of IHP personnel to the border a couple of months ago. Fear, fear, fear.

When I think of Grassley’s little tweet the other day, I can’t help of Steve King’s comment about “cantaloupe calves” to describe a fictitious Latino drug mule a few years back. That one plus others made King too stinky even for Republicans. They should treat Grassley the same way.

You would think that after 42 years Grassley could grow up and act like a statesman. Nope, Chuck uses his stature to blow the dog whistle.

Oh and just as a reminder here are some of the dog whistles from years past:

  • Welfare queen
  • Forced busing
  • Thugs
  • Urban
  • Law and order
  • Inner city
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Senator Joe Bolkcom

Posted on November 5, 2021 by Trish Nelson


Those of us who are proud to live in Iowa’s bluest senate district will greatly miss our senator, Joe Bolkcom, who announced yesterday that he will not seek reelection in 2022.

“I’m proud to have been part of the progressive legislative Democratic majority from 2007 to 2010 and the one-vote Iowa Senate Democratic majority from 2011 to 2016,” Bolkcom said Thursday.

“For six years, we blocked today’s ferocious, ongoing Republican attacks on Iowa workers, reproductive rights, health care, environment, and public education.”

Among the highlights of his legislative efforts, Bolkcom said, was working on the largest expansion of Iowa’s Earned Income Tax Credit to help lift families out of poverty; extending civil rights protections to LGBTQ Iowans; saving Iowans’ lives by raising the price of a pack of cigarettes by $1 and ending smoking in workplaces such as restaurants and bar; expanding Medicaid; creating the Iowa Health and Wellness Program; and establishing a regional mental health system.

Bolkcom authored legislation establishing the Iowa Climate Change Advisory Council.

He also authored the state’s solar tax credit incentives that have generated more than $400 million in private investment, 1,000 permanent jobs and built thousands of new solar power systems on Iowa homes, farms and businesses. – Gazette

He also gives great speeches.

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Media Narratives Are Groupthink Not Reality

Posted on November 4, 2021 by Trish Nelson

Seventeen years after his presidential run I still enjoy listening to Howard Dean.  He always has something unique and valuable to add to the dialogue.  It’s never the same old tired drivel of the professional pundit class.

Howard Dean doesn’t get on TV a lot anymore and when he does he refuses to go along with the cable news Narrative.  He bluntly tells the truth just as he always has.  So while everyone else is making it seem like the entire country has gone off the deep end, Dean reminds us that the right wing is actually in the minority.

I saw a segment with Dean and former RNC chair Michael Steele and thought, how great if the former DNC and RNC chairs had their own show. They were quite the dynamic duo together. I remember when I would turn off the sound when Steele was on back when he was RNC chair. But he has been an excellent outspoken yet pragmatic commentator ever since he escaped the Republican party.  The ones who got away seem to despise Republicans even more than regular people do.

Media narratives shape our perception of how things are. They aren’t necessarily true and are frequently false. Pulitzer prize winning columnist for The Washington Post Eugene Robinson, a member of the media, wrote honestly about the phenomenon that he calls The Narrative:

Like wildebeests crossing the Serengeti, journalists travel in a herd. We follow not the life-giving seasonal rains but a safe, comfortable, groupthink story arc — call it The Narrative — whose current chapter is titled “Democrats are doomed.” – Eugene Robinson

Howard Dean said the following on The Beat with Ari Berman recently. How would things be different if this was the chosen media narrative that we all heard on TV and in social media over and over 24-7?

“People are fed up with this. They’re fed up with this in all parts of the country. Normal ordinary good Americans no matter whether they’re Republicans or Democrats they’re sick of it and they blame the far right and Trump and Cruz and Desantis and Abbot and all these wing-nuts who know better for the most part and are consistently catering to the worst instincts of human beings. It’s wrecking the country and we’re not going to put up with it anymore.”

It’s not hard to imagine how a different Narrative could start a movement.

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Forever Chemicals In Iowa’s Water

Posted on November 3, 2021 by Trish Nelson

Dana Kolpin is a guest on this edition of Podcast by George! He is a research hydrologist with the Central Midwest Water Science Center. He has published over 200 papers and reports on environmental contaminants.

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