Precision

You are going to start seeing larger and increasingly violent protests as this crisis continues to unfold. I believe these protests could be worse than the BLM protests. BLM protests were "against the establishment (i.e., police)" whereas the anti-migrant protests will be against a group of people. At some point there will be violence toward migrants, and they will respond (as has happened in Europe). Next year's recession (not soft landing) will likely exacerbate the problem.

By 2035 Russia will resemble a third world country (anyone who's been there knows that there are areas that already fit this description). By 2035 the population is projected to decline from 144 million to under 140 million without taking account the full impacts of the ongoing war. The primary exports (oil and gas) will become less relevant as the world moves toward renewables. The loss of military capability in the current conflict (and the economic inability to rebuild the armed forced) will encourage other countries within the Russian Federation sphere of influence to split off. Georgia and Moldova are future NATO candidates and any number of the "stan's" would likely try to go it alone.

Yeah, the US auto manufacturers have been killing it, or rather themselves. I'm sure a higher paid, less productive workforce will only help them. In addition to my car I've always had a Ford F-150. My current model (2018) is the worst of the four I've owned dating back to the early 90's. Consumer Reports ranking for the most reliable cars of 2023 are in. Here are the winners. What are the most reliable automotive brands? 1. Toyota 2. Lexus 3. BMW 4. Mazda 5. Honda 6. Audi 7. Subaru 8. Acura 9. Kia 10. Lincoln 11. Buick 12. Genesis 13. Hyundai 14. Volvo 15. Nissan 16. Ram 17. Cadillac 18. Ford 19. Tesla 20. Chevrolet 21. GMC 22. Volkswagen 23. Jeep 24. Mercedes-Benz

How quickly we forget about Andrew Cuomo.

I'd like to see many more of them bussed to DC. Perhaps if the capital was overwhelmed, federal officials might decide to take action.

It's amazing to me as well! I did a quick search, and it looks like there are 60K in just the TSA.

It seems clear to me the rise in migrants coincide with results from the 2020 election (2021 would have been the first year impacted by these elected officials). The Biden administration took over in 2021. Also, the Democrats maintained their House majority and won the Senate majority in the 2020 election. I don't see where the increase in migrants have been impacted by the judicial branch unless someone can provide a Supreme Court decision that indicates a dramatic change with immigration. Title 42 ended in May of 2023 and its effects are not in the graph below. Ideally congress should be passing laws regarding immigration, but the legislative branch is broke. Immigration is generally controlled through executive orders. The Border Patrol is a component of the Department of Homeland Security which is managed by the Secretary of Homeland Security (a cabinet position). As such, even in the absence of executive orders, the direct management of border enforcement by the executive branch would imply the president bears responsibility. An FYI for today, the Department of Homeland Security employees over 260,000 people!

Signs of an unhealthy industry with uncertain long-term potential. European Renewables Hit Three-Year Low as Wind Malaise Deepens

I've met Chris and he is genuinely nice and engaging. It's far from the strained act you see with most politicians. He did a great job in NH during the pandemic and his approval rating here is high. An anecdote about him most people don't know. He has been known to call state employee having issues (health, death in the family, etc) to offer his support.

Near-shoring, the move of production from China to Mexico has been going on for years and accelerating recently as companies look for alternatives to China. Labor costs have been lower in Mexico than China for the past 10 years. This has been particularly advantageous for US companies. Mexico's close proximity allow for an easier transition from product development to production and allows the US company to actively manage production. As an example, going from product development to production is always difficult but the distance to Mexico makes it easier to send engineers to the production site to resolve any issues. Also, communication is easier as well since Mexico is aligned with the US time zones. With goods bound for the US, Mexico has had a unique advantage over China as transit times are much shorter which allows faster responses to demand and product lifecycle issues. Also, the goods produced in Mexico bypass the logistic problems of overseas shipping and the bottlenecks at ports.

I love the fake bravo of being "beyond capable". In my experience those with over-the-top arrogance are usually the least capable.

Ralph Waldo Emerson — 'When you strike at a king, you must kill him.'

You would be well served by utilizing the "checking features" in the message board editor as you compose a message. Also, insults, swearing or using "your people" makes for a poor argument unless you are trying to come across as "Archie Bunker". Finally, the title of the thread is regarding the "planks of the right wing's platform". The discussion has nothing to do with Maga Republicans or an ex-president, I hope you can grasp that. I'll respond to your reply even though it has nothing to do with the thread title. If in a funk is controlling 26 governorships, 28 state legislatures, the House of Representatives and the Supreme Court then perhaps you don't understand the definition of funk? Also, you may have noticed the hundreds of thousands of Americans moving from blue states to red states. I suspect you believe all these people are in a funk as well. Conversely Chicago, Portland, SF, LA, NYC are not in a funk according to you? Don't be so ignorant as to assume who I am supporting for president or any office as I have supported candidates of both parties. In the presidential race there are primaries for both candidates which along with age and legal issues could see any one of a number of people running in the general election in place of the current contenders. It is obtuse to assume who anyone will support in the general election prior to first primary or any debates.

I don't think Republicans are in a funk at all. The title of the thread is "What are the planks of the right-wing platform?" and I listed what I believe they are. I fail to see the connection between limited government and books that are inappropriate in schools. Do you believe that all books should be allowed in all schools, or do you believe that the government should not be involved in making these decisions?

Limited government. Energy independence. Right to bear arms/upholding the 2nd amendment. Pro-life. Limiting taxes and allowing the greatest economy in the world to thrive without being limited government interference. Personal responsibility. Free speech/no censorship or "cancel culture". Just one more.....knowing the difference between a man and a woman. I think many liberal women wish they were born a man even though they don't understand what that means. Most liberal men are easily confused as being women so I can see how this gender perversion has made its way into the Democratic party. Even the gay community has started distancing itself from this gender nonsense. The GOP should have fiscal responsibility/reducing the debt but that seems to have fallen out of favor. Forgot to add common sense immigration reform, even if it means continuing construction of the border wall.

The Inflation Reduction Act should have been called the Renewable Energy Subsidy Act. The largest component of spending in the act is targeted toward renewables and climate change initiatives. Anyone with the means who is a homeowner should consider taking advantage of the "free money" being thrown around in this act. In our case we received quotes for solar that with the government rebate will eliminate our $350+/month electric bill with a payback of 6-7 years. We are getting quotes for geothermal (ground source heat pump) and considering replacing our 10-year-old pool air source heat pump so that we fully utilize these incentives while they are available. Personally, I think the act was a poorly named and thought-out way to promote renewables. The incentives will largely be utilized by middle to upper income homeowners in suburban or rural settings. These incentives do nothing for renters, urban homeowners or homeless. It really highlights the stupidity of blue state representatives as in general their constituents benefit the least from this spending.

Since I drive an Audi, below is a link from 6/22 that applies to all of their EV/e-tron models. I could dig through other manufacturers for similar information but don't have time. An ideal basis for planning: Range display in Audi electric cars gives a reliable picture Consumption history, outside temperature, and other parameters make for a realistic calculation. Predictive, reliable, and dynamic: Audi e-tron models give drivers the choice between two different options to calculate the range, one with and one without the route planner as part of the Audi Multi Media Interface (Audi MMI). Without the technical support of the satnav and the route planner, the calculation of the remaining range rests on recent consumption values. The system also reflects driver-specific properties, such as an especially sporty or economical driving style. Isolated special factors, such as energy-intensive passing maneuvers, are reliably averaged out, ensuring a realistic calculation. In addition to consumption data from the drive and onboard power systems, the car’s distribution point and electrical nervous system, remaining range calculation also factors in thermal management data (heating or AC) or the use of additional comfort features such as seat or steering wheel heating. Also considered are the selected driving mode, individual car configuration, load, and climactic conditions. In this way, the range display represents the most recent consumption data and projects them into the future, without additional data from the route planer. The above sounds complicated but it is not. There is a circuit in the vehicle that senses the current draw from the battery. Audi is taking the starting charge (which they calculate from prior usage, last charge and outside temperature) and then factor in the rate of miles traveled versus current used. They update the projected range "real time" as even with numerous variables a weighted average calculation of current used per mile is simple.

That is odd! Maybe higher gas prices previously or perhaps the EV novelty wore off?

Glad it has been a good vehicle for you! I did not realize that Tesla would cancel service requests they deemed frivolous. I'm not sure how I feel about this, but it is certainly different from my experience in servicing my vehicles. I think the issue in the linked article was that Tesla indicated to owners that they had performed "remote diagnostics" on the vehicle when they had not. I could see why Tesla would consider this frivolous but as an owner I would be upset at being misled regarding the diagnostics not being performed. I don't think you understood the point I was trying to make regarding range. At hot and cold temperatures your car will have less range due to the reduced energy storage of the batteries. This is regardless of how or if you use the HVAC/stereo/wipers/lights/etc. This loss of range is not fed back to the driver until late in the process of driving, not until the battery hits 50% of its stored energy. As an example, your car at an outside temperature of 32F will indicate 315 miles of range at startup even though it is impossible for it to exceed 250 miles. Referencing the graph, temperatures in the single digits can drop range by 50%. This is certainly an issue for some drivers and is potentially a safety issue depending on your location/distance between charging stations. Adjusting the "potential range" (which as you indicated is likely even less) based on the energy stored in the batteries (which correlates with outside temperature) is the responsible path that Tesla should have taken rather than just indicating the possible range under ideal circumstances. This large variance in range without informing the driver would certainly initiate a recall in an ICE vehicle.

Nice car! Glad to hear that your estimated range has been good!

I am very much in favor of nuclear as well. Some of the small nuclear reactors coming out are promising regarding cost, efficiency and waste. My preference would be to expand nuclear rather than spend so heavily on green energy. I think solar does have a place in the energy infrastructure but have never been a fan of wind. I would like to hear from posters who advocate wind turbines as a power source. An energy source that is intermittent, has a lifespan of roughly 20 years, a yearly MTBF of 1% per year, can impact local people and fowl (in this case eagles). How much money was spent introducing bald eagles back into WNY only to have them unceremoniously chopped up in the name of climate change? Have any advocates of wind turbines spent time or lived near them? Who is responsible for cleanup from failed wind turbines or the decommissioning of them? The farmer in Rexville NY who had charred fiberglass all over his property from the wind turbine that caught fire there this spring. Will he be fairly compensated for the cleanup, current damage and potentially future damage to his land? Are subjects like any of the above even factored into the analysis of wind power or since it's "green" some choose not to discuss the shortfalls?

Hope you are enjoying your vehicle. I drove an "S" couple of years ago and really enjoyed how quiet the vehicle was. It was more than we wanted to spend and being in NH I was worried about the range during our cold winter months. My thoughts regarding range are that the car should take into account the weather (temperature) the second it is turned on and adjust the estimated range accordingly. Performing this would be trivial, range loss in extremely hot or cold conditions is on the order of 20% which is significant. Most current vehicles provide real time feedback on the driver's mileage based on speed and driving style (my 2019 A6 vehicle does this). Drove from NH to WNY in June, when I started the trip, I thought I would need to stop for gas. The vehicle stated my mileage was 26 MPG (415 miles of range) when I left NH, it adjusted up to 33 MPG (525 miles of range) by the time I had hit Springfield MA as the driving was all highway and traffic was light. Having said all of the above, to me there are 2 issues from the article. First was that when owners called Tesla regarding range concerns, they were lied to regarding remote diagnostics being performed on their vehicle. The second was that Telsa should have informed customers that range is only adjusted once the batteries reach 50% of their charge. In some areas of the US depending on the loss in range customers might have difficulties reaching a charging station. "When customers noticed their range wasn’t matching the dashboard estimates and called the company to make service appointments, Tesla employees would follow directives to tell customers they'd performed “remote diagnostics” and cancel the appointment, the report said. The company reportedly went as far as to create an entire Las Vegas-based “diversion team” devoted to quieting customer complaints about the inaccurate range, a group that was told by managers it saved Tesla $1,000 for every appointment it canceled."

Hopefully RFK Jr doesn't have a swimming accident or commit suicide like Jeffrey Epstein.

Is anyone surprised...... Tesla Exaggerated Its Cars’ Driving Range—And Canceled Service Appointments If Drivers Complained, Report Says "Tesla programmers rigged the cars’ range-estimating software to exaggerate how far they could go without running out of battery and then, when charge on the battery fell below 50%, readjust to a more realistic projection, one Tesla employee told Reuters—an idea that came directly from CEO Elon Musk himself."

There was no proof but even if there were it would not have mattered, that was my point that you clearly did not grasp. The American people had enough of the entire affair once they had learned of the interference from the Clinton campaign. I'll politely say that I frequently contribute to GOP and occasionally Dem candidates as well as attend events. You might want to file your cult comment somewhere else champ.