Friday Open Thread

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88 comments to Friday Open Thread

  • #
    David Maddison

    I was just talking to a friend, a specialist medical doctor who visits various hospitals for his work and he informed me he has just had his fifth jab.

    I have thoroughly informed him of the dangers and he is well aware of them in any case. He has even spoken to Jayanta Bhattacharya when he visited Australia but he went ahead anyway.

    Not even the hospitals he visits asked him to have five jabs.

    He is hoping he is one of the lucky ones thst suffers no (obvious) ill effects.

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    • #

      I have had no jabs, have ignored the Guv’ments and Health so called gurus, have ignored the MSM, have ignored the Doctors, have ignored the ‘advice’ of some of my friends and Guess What? Being retired, I could not be ‘blackmailed’ into having the jabs. I have just turned age 70 years and have not had the virus as far as I know of. I have never been tested by these so called tests and I don’t believe that they work either. And, I am still here. Maybe I have an immune system that works for me.

      And I do realise that there are lots of people that could not have done what I have done

      Either way, every day when I wake up in the morning, it is going to be a great day. I will die of something but so what? We will all die one day.

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      • #
        Graeme No.3

        Me too. But I’ve met a number who’ve “had the jab” and still got Covid, sometimes twice.
        Doesn’t seem to offer much protection.

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        • #
          PeterPetrum

          Indeed, my daughter and her in-law family have all had four jabs and almost all of them have had Covid at least once, some twice. My wife and I (in our 80’s) have had three jabs before I managed to convince her that we had to stop. So far – Covid free despite it being rampant in our village. We are Vit D takers and in rude good health – let’s hope it lasts.

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      • #
        Joao Martins

        Retired 70+ here. I agree with every single word of yours: no jabs, some supplements (vitamins, zinc), no masks (whenever possible; Portugal’s police state still enforces them in hospitals), free contacts with everyone as (was) usual (before 2020), including shaking hands, hugs and kisses; slight cold last spring, treated as usual before 2020 WITHOUT tests (just symptom observation).
        As you say, trying to make everyday a great day before we die (as everyone) of something.

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      • #
        OldOzzie

        77 coming up to 78 – live with Wife in 3 Generation Family of 7, all jabbed, all had Covid this year – over 90 times at hospital over 2 years of Covid, besides kids describing me as “Cockroach”, the only thing that would survive Nuclear Blast, only one not to have had Covid

        Have been taking antivirals for over 3 years. hate masks amd same as Joao, free contacts with everyone as (was) usual (before 2020), including shaking hands, hugs and kisses, feeling fine and Specialists amazed at recovery capabilities after Major Op and 2 years Cancer Immunotherapy

        10

  • #
    David Maddison

    I am constantly bombarded by calls with people wanting me to sign up for the solar rebate in Vicdanistan.

    It must be very profitable for installers.

    Does anyone have any figures what this harvesting of taxpayer dollars is worth to installers?

    In any case, no one wants to install panels on my house for any reasonable amount of money because it is too difficult as it is three stories and has a steep roof. There are plenty of single story houses with less steep roofs installers would rather do fitouts on.

    However I installed a few of my own panels and batteries to keep some things running for when the grid goes black after the next proper power station is shut down.

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    • #
      Gee Aye

      Put yourself on the no call list.

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      • #
        paul courtney

        Mr. Aye: Doesn’t the “no call list” have some exception for the robocallers who are saving the planet?

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        • #
          GlenM

          There seems to be no end to the” botherers and the “social engineers”WHo wish to modify and control your life. Asking for some anti inflammatory over the shelf is asking for a list of contraindications and risks froma 16 year old pharmqacy attendants. Mercurochrome? Can’t buiy it.

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        • #
          cadger

          This works in North America.

          http://www.kengolf.com/

          Free sit.wav download on the right of page.

          10

    • #
      • #
        Bruce

        appear to be a couple of “Robo-Probers” operating

        Their system automatically calles numbers. If the receiver “picks up”, it is flaggeed as “live” and the computer rings the next one. 24/7/365.

        All of the “live” phones are probably “bundled” and sold to an endless array of dodgy commercial and possibly “spook” operations.

        Many of these “probing calles come up on “caller ID” but ALL the numbers are bogus, thust the people running these rock-shows are being very creative with the phone system.

        If I could work out a way to send a couple of hundred thousand volts back through the NBN, I might give it a go, but it would simply vapourize my NBN “modem’ and possibly the next “breakout box” up the line.

        Plan “B”? Dunno, yet.

        Speaking of the “wonderful” NBN; how did all the soggy punters in NSW get on calling for help once the mains power was cut? No “juice”, no “modem and no “services” hub / “switcher”.

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    • #

      I am constantly bombarded by calls with people wanting me to sign up for the solar rebate in Vicdanistan.

      Man, so was I, both solar panels and do I want to change energy providers, averaging one a day, no point telling them not to call again, as they just persist anyway, even though I told them every time that I live in an apartment in a three level apartment block, and I’m renting. Makes no difference.

      Then ….. our daughter mentioned that all our calls on the home phone were scratchy and cutting out, and the same message from my sister as well. We had seven year old Telstra home phones, so I had a look and got a new home phone pair of ‘walkie’ phones, their new Telstra Call Guardian 301, ($72) with two handsets. It blocks all spam calls.

      Easy to set up too. Just took the time to enter all family and friends numbers into the ‘saved’ numbers easy dial menu.

      Now, when a call comes in, if the caller is family or friend, it rings through. Any other number like spam calls, there are two rings and then they get the message ….. this call is blocked. Not that I can answer within two rings anyway, so anything longer than those two rings, then I know it is an accepted family etc. You can then check that incoming number (two rings) on the phone, and either add it to your accepted list, or just delete the call.

      Those annoying calls have stopped completely in the last three weeks. They still ring twice, but when it stops ringing after those two rings ….. another one bites the dust.

      I’m @n@l about batteries (any of them) and these come with a standard 700mAH AAA rechargeable, so I’ll be changing them for either an 800mAH (Energizer) or the more difficult to find 900mAH batteries (Duracell) and they only retail at Target I think. (all of them Nickel Metal Hydride)

      Tony.

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      • #

        Not sure about this, but it makes me wonder about those Spam calls.

        Our daughter, her husband and their daughter all have mobile phones, changed regularly, along with the plans. She tells me she gets those spam calls on her Mobile phone, as does her husband an daughter as well, and I sort of expected similar as well.

        However, I have a pay as you go phone, and I get a $50 recharge from Woolies every three or so Months, usually run out of time before I run out of calls.

        I have NEVER had a spam call on my mobile phone.

        They have plans. I have pay as you go, on an old (old) Samsung.

        They get spam calls. I don’t.

        Pay as you go maybe???

        Who knows?

        Tony.

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      • #
        Strop

        I found that registering the number on the “do not call” register did reduce a lot of calls to our landline. So I recommend doing this even though it’s not foolproof. Charities are exempt from obeying the do not call rules and I suppose so are international scammers who pose as local numbers.
        https://www.donotcall.gov.au/

        .

        We ditched the landline for phone calls and rely on mobile only now. Unfortunately the “do not call” register doesn’t accept mobile numbers.

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    • #
      Grogery

      Regarding getting bombarded by people wanting to install solar panels on your roof.

      Just tell them you have an asbestos roof (even if you don’t).

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    • #
      Fran

      Unless someone comes up with solar panels that could keep my freezers up without $$$for batteries, inverters, etc, I’ll use gasoline generater.

      20

  • #
    Philc

    I was just talking to a friend, a specialist medical doctor who visits various hospitals for his work and he informed me he has just had his fifth jab.

    Just goes to show intelligence should not be measured by educational status.

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  • #
    John Connor II

    Climate change is making migraines, strokes and DEMENTIA more severe and common, review claims

    Climate change is making a host of health conditions more common and severe, a review has claimed.

    Researchers looked at 364 studies dating back to 1990.

    They found rising global temperatures and increasingly severe weather events have increased the risks of strokes, dementia and multiple sclerosis.

    But it is not just chronic illnesses, more mild ailments like headaches have also become more common, the study claims.

    Prior research shows higher longer summers and hotter temperatures put increased stress on the heart.

    The body has to work harder to stay cool and pump blood round to different organs.

    And evidence shows that when pollution is breathed in, it also seeps into the bloodstream.

    This chronic stress on the on the body drives up the risk of brain disorders and neurological diseases.

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-11436567/All-head-Climate-change-making-migraines-dementia-strokes-severe-common.html

    Uh huh..

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    • #
      David Maddison

      Climate change is making a host of health conditions more common and severe, a review has claimed.

      I would say any genuine illnesses that occur are a result of destruction of businesses, a decrease in the standard of living and general mental stress from high prices and frustratiom caused by the anti-energy policies associated with supposed “climate change”. Plus the feeling of helplessness of people like the rational thinkers of this blog dealing with people who simply won’t listen to reason and science.

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    • #
      Philc

      Yeh nothing to do with the clot shot. Nah couldn’t be. sarc

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    • #
      Gary S

      ‘when pollution is breathed in….’ This is misinformation of the highest order. Will they be ‘cancelled’?

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  • #
    John Connor II

    Better acceleration in your Merc EV will cost you $1,200 a year

    Mercedes-Benz is the latest auto manufacturer to unveil a subscription fee to unlock perks, such as the ability to boost acceleration.

    The $1,200 yearly subscription is called “Acceleration Increase” and can be found on Mercedes’ online store.

    “COMING SOON – Accelerate more powerfully: increase the torque and maximum output of your Mercedes-EQ,” reads the description on the online store. It’s available for all upcoming EQ electric models that will “improvement in acceleration of 0.8 to 1.0 seconds (0-60 MPH).”

    https://www.zerohedge.com/technology/mercedes-intentionally-detuning-its-evs-charge-1200-yearly-acceleration-fee

    As I posted before, the average ICE driver moving to an EV is going to have their accident risk increase.
    (Ignoring grannies in small EVs doing 60km/h on the highway going to Woolies. Grrrr…).

    Electric cars involved in more accidents than regular vehicles, study shows

    Electric cars are involved in 50% more traffic accidents than their petrol and diesel counterparts, according to a study by insurer Axa.

    The high number of accidents has actually nothing to do with the technology, but everything to do with the driving behaviour of the drivers. It is mainly the fast and sharp acceleration that surprises drivers, especially those new to the cars, and leads to accidents.

    We see more and more battery-powered electric cars on our motorways. Of newly registered vehicles, more than 17,000 were purely electric in the first half of this year. That is no less than 8.8 percent of new cars. With hybrids included, more than 30 percent of newly registered cars in 2022 will now be fully or partially powered by electric motors.

    At the same time as the growing number of electric vehicles on the road, concerns about their safety are also increasing. Their batteries are of specific concern: if they catch fire, they are extremely difficult to extinguish. However, insurer Axa surveyed more than 1,200 owners of electric cars and looked at its accident statistics. Their findings show that the striking accident figures actually have nothing to do with the fire risk.

    Axa’s data shows that flammable batteries are not the big problem with electric vehicles. Electric cars do not catch fire more than cars with combustion engines on petrol or diesel.

    https://www.brusselstimes.com/287315/electric-cars-involved-in-more-accidents-than-regular-vehicles-study-shows

    Maybe advanced driver training prior to being granted EV “purchasing power” is the way to go.

    50

    • #
      ozfred

      Oh!
      Someone remembered the IBM policies of the 1960s. Your card reader or printer or etc was significantly faster when the higher rental was paid and a pulley or soft ware change was made.
      I guess I am too old?

      20

      • #
        David Maddison

        In early Tesla’s you had the option of a “long range” battery. Both cars had the same battery but the long range vehicle had a software switch enabled to access the one third of the battery which wasn’t used by the standard model. After some calamity in Florida like a hurricane Tesla activated the long range option in all cars so they could get to safety.

        And I have a digital oscilloscope. One version is 50MHz, the other is 100MHz but costs considerably more. The only difference is the firmware. Hackers worked out how to install the 100MHz firmware in the 50MHz model…

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    • #
      Hanrahan

      Hybrids are NOT a subset of EVs. They are basically ICEs with regenerative breaking.

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  • #
    John Connor II

    Ireland’s defence against cyber attack on energy supplies tested in simulation exercise

    The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has held an emergency exercise simulating the national response to a hypothetical large-scale cyber incident affecting Ireland’s energy sector.

    The aim of the exercise, which took place in the National Emergency Coordination Centre, was to test the procedures outlined in the National Cyber Emergency Plan to ensure the Government, State agencies, and relevant stakeholders are prepared for a cyber attack on critical infrastructure.

    The Garda, the Defence Forces, ESB Networks, EirGrid, Gas Networks Ireland, the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities, and a third-party cyber incident provider took part in the exercise.

    The Government said ESB Networks, EirGrid and Gas Networks Ireland have “robust and tested procedures” in place to deal with emergencies of this nature.

    https://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2022/11/24/irelands-defence-against-cyber-attack-on-energy-supplies-tested-in-simulation-exercise/

    No specifics are available so no idea what they tested or how thoroughly they tested anything.
    2023 will see a major increase in attacks on essential infrastructure, medical systems and cloud storage.

    20

  • #
    John Connor II

    Cleveland Clinic reports $1B loss in first half of this year


    Cleveland Clinic’s revenue was down year over year in the second quarter of this year, and the health system ended the period with a loss, according to financial documents released Aug. 29.

    The health system’s revenue totaled $3.1 billion in the three-month period ended June 30, down from $3.2 billion in the same quarter last year.

    Cleveland Clinic reported expenses of $3.1 billion in the second quarter of this year, up from $2.7 billion in the same period last year. The system saw expenses rise across all categories, including supplies and salaries, wages and benefits.

    “Nationwide labor shortages have created staffing challenges that have resulted in increased overtime costs and premium pay for employed caregivers as well as an increase in the utilization of agency nurses and other temporary personnel to meet the demand of patient activity,” Cleveland Clinic said in an earnings release. “Supplies, pharmaceuticals and other nonlabor expenses have also increased due to recent inflationary trends and supply chain challenges.”

    The health system ended the second quarter with an operating loss of $183.5 million, compared to operating income of $339.5 million in the second quarter of 2021.

    After factoring in nonoperating losses, Cleveland Clinic posted a net loss of $786.9 million in the second quarter of this year, compared to net income of $904.4 million in the same quarter a year earlier.

    Looking at the first six months of this year, Cleveland Clinic reported a net loss of $1.1 billion on revenue of $6.2 billion. In the same period a year earlier, the health system reported net income of $1.3 billion on revenue of $6 billion, according to the financial documents.

    Nonoperating losses for Cleveland Clinic were $781.4 million in the first six months of this year, compared to nonoperating gains of $853.5 million in the same period last year. The decrease was primarily due to lower investment returns in the first half of 2022.

    https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/finance/cleveland-clinic-reports-1b-loss-in-first-half-of-this-year.html

    The figures are quite amazing and highlight the massive looming crisis for the health sector.

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  • #
    David Maddison

    Unlike Leftists, we on the rational side of things are unafraid of alternative opinions.

    So, here is an 8 min video claiming to prove that supposed “global warming” cannot be to do with the Sun.

    What are your opinions on this?

    https://youtu.be/y35Lzgc9iJk

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    • #
      Gee Aye

      I’m yet to see an 8 minute video with as much substance as an 8 page scientific paper no matter what side they are on. For good writers and presenters, it is very easy to blog or vlog a seemingly coherent chain of logical rhetoric. Creating a nice neat story that seems convincing is their talent (looks up), but that is not an indicator of scientific merit.

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    • #
      Memoryvault

      Complete and utter bullcrap, based entirely on easily discredited misdirection and obfuscation of cause and effect.

      Given that the video posting openly credits and promotes the UN position on “climate change”, and was released to coincide with COP 27, it is safe to assume it is part of a coordinated misinformation campaign in support of the UN/IPCC war on co2.

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    • #
      RickWill

      As soon as you see anyone claiming EMR goes from cold to hot you know their understanding of physics is seriously lacking. Radiation cannot travel agains a temperature gradient.

      It is the same as suggesting your starter motor in the car puts 2kW back into the battery but the battery puts out 6kW to give a net of 4kW into the starter motor. It does not work like that. The energy only flows one way. From the battery to the starter motor.

      The Stephan Boltzman equation is a simplification of much more complex field theory that was first described in Maxwell’s equations and later developed by Einstein into a general theory that includes gravity.

      Earth actually has a tiny impact on the sun’s radiation field in a similar way as it experiences Earth’s mass through the gravity field. All matter communicates with other matter at the speed of light through a vacuum. If earth vanished it would take 8 minutes for the sun to experience that change in both the gravity field and electric-magnetic field.

      Michael Mischenko has now passed but before passing, he made a significant contribution to NASA/GISS’s understanding of radiation yet they persist with the notion that “back” radiation exists. It doesn’t.

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      • #
        b.nice

        If I wanted to buy cattle.. maybe he would be worth listening to.!

        As Rick says.. net radiation flux is dependent of temperature difference, ..

        … and the atmospheric temperature gradient is governed by the gravity thermal gradient.

        10

        • #
          b.nice

          Oh, and there are other forms of atmospheric energy transfer that are magnitudes more significant that the tiny weak CO2 radiation band.

          Otherwise wind energy would not exist and “renewables” (lol) would be sucking in CO2 back-radiation to provide us a constant reliable source of electricity. 😉

          30

    • #
      John+in+NZ

      I had a look at it. It is just a strawman argument. He doesn’t understand the sceptical position.

      Videos like this one merely confirm my sceptical opinion. There is always a possibility that watching this video could have shown me new evidence of which I was not aware and my opinion might then change.

      But there wasn’t anything new in this video.

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  • #
    GreatAuntJanet

    New York is about to be in the poo. But what amazed me the most about this story was to learn that NYC’s poop is USUALLY trucked out on trains to landfills in southern USA!
    https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/health/prospective-rail-strike-may-leave-millions-pounds-feces-new-york-city

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  • #
    David Maddison

    In the Vicdanistan election both Libs and Labs are trying to outdo each other in the amount of “free stuff” they are giving away.

    Do the Sheeple not understand where the money for all this free stuff comes from?

    Obviously Labor is an even worse culprit than the Liberals.

    And in one of the more bizarre election “promises”, Matthew Guy (pretend Liberal “leader”) wants to build more EV charging stations in caravan (US=travel trailer) parks. In the distances typically travelled in Australia towing a caravan, it is not likely any EV could reach the destination.

    https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/victorian-election-2022-live-updates-campaign-enters-final-day-daniel-andrews-matthew-guy-ramp-up-promises-20221124-p5c13u.html

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    • #
      Dennis

      Of course the understand David, “the government” that has a bottomless pit of money, money trees and even a magic pudding.

      The government of course is where Centrelink clients “pay day” wages come from.

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    • #
      Grogery

      Do the Sheeple not understand where the money for all this free stuff comes from?

      No. The majority of “sheeple” are stupid.

      They will only realise something has gone wrong when “everything just stops”.

      40

  • #
    David Maddison

    Here is a very good video about Elon Musk’s progress at Twitter and how he is making it into a free speech platform for everyone, Leftists and rational thinkers alike.

    13 min 40 sec

    https://youtu.be/W5c3tl-zitc

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  • #
    TdeF

    It is appalling that development of the Galilee Basic coal is now being stopped by concerns about climate change from coal burned overseas. Especially when over half comes from one country which is ramping up CO2 output.

    Anyway as everyone now knows, CO2 is in rapid equilibrium and fossil fuel CO2 is under 3%. It cannot grow firstly as it is diluted by the natural growth of CO2 by warming ocean surfaces. Secondly it is self limiting and the more the total CO2 goes, the more fossil fuel CO2 is swept away by the increased CO2 flux into the oceans.

    The belief expressed by the IPCC that incredibly soluble CO2 gas takes 80 years for even half to enter the ocean is quite inexplicable. The other belief is that CO2 takes ‘thousands of years’ to enter the ocean. It staggers me that no one questions this. Just as it staggered me that the manufacture of the Wuhan Bar virus by a purpose built military laboratory in Wuhan specializing in gain of function research with bat virusus about which everyone was aware and even involved including the French who built it and Fauci who part funded it, was hidden by so many experts in the field. And still, despite the millions dead, no one says anything. As with with the CO2.

    And there are many other subjects in the whole Woke spectrum which are beyond fact and logic, but only one side is ever put. And from Trudeau to Johnson to Biden to Albanese, everyone agrees that the only world problem other then Climate Change is Putin.

    While in Victoria tomorrow, everyone is talking about Greens as if they are a real political party with sensible policies? And the Liberals are talking an alliance, just like Malcolm Turnbull.

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  • #
    Hanrahan

    Something outta left field that may be another hurdle in the roll out of EVs.

    I just watched a vid of a Pom complaining that he couldn’t charge his car because someone had cut the charging cable for scrap value. The Three Prong dealership over the road suffered the same fate.

    If they expect to halve charge times the cables will be worth even more as scrap.

    40

  • #
    Philip

    I note my neighbour has new solar panels, that is, he has replaced the old ones that first appeared say, 10 years ago max.

    I also went to a house yesterday that had tesla batteries and the brag of no bills “free electricity”. I also noted behind the shed, was a pile of 12 old solar panels with long grass growing around the edges.

    Seems to be the reality. Panels not lasting that 25 years?

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    • #
      Hanrahan

      It could be that your neighbour’s panels were still OK but his system wasn’t. There is no way you can get a poor system upgraded, you are only offered new, complete systems.

      About half a dozen I’ve contacted to upgrade mine have not responded.

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      • #
        ozfred

        Agree that upgrades to ten year old systems are “hard to find”. My old 4kw (two string) system is now a (two string) 6kw system. And the reused 10 year old panels show an apparent 4% to 6% reduction in efficiency compared to the new ones.
        Why the upgrade?
        1. Even in WA the price of grid electricity is never going to go down.
        2. Ten year inverter warranty was expiring in 2 months
        3. The new inverters have battery capability even if Western Power really does not want rural/regional customers to use such. Hint: Install a battery will cause grid connection “perhaps to be” reduced to half that of Perth connections.
        4. Maybe someday I will get the installer to document the backup (ie off grid mode) of the inverters.
        5. The original source of almost all panels and inverters is China. What are the odds of a supply chain disruption affecting availability or cost?
        6. There never was enough winter supply.

        10

  • #
    another ian

    Latest Pointman

    “FORCING THE ANNIHILATION OF THE UKRAINE.”

    https://thepointman.wordpress.com/2022/11/25/forcing-the-annihilation-of-the-ukraine/

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    • #
      OldOzzie

      Excellent assessment

      Meanwhile Politico no less – Europe accuses US of profiting from war

      EU officials attack Joe Biden over sky-high gas prices, weapons sales and trade as Vladimir Putin’s war threatens to destroy Western unity.

      Nine months after invading Ukraine, Vladimir Putin is beginning to fracture the West.

      Top European officials are furious with Joe Biden’s administration and now accuse the Americans of making a fortune from the war, while EU countries suffer.

      “The fact is, if you look at it soberly, the country that is most profiting from this war is the U.S. because they are selling more gas and at higher prices, and because they are selling more weapons,” one senior official told POLITICO.

      The explosive comments — backed in public and private by officials, diplomats and ministers elsewhere — follow mounting anger in Europe over American subsidies that threaten to wreck European industry. The Kremlin is likely to welcome the poisoning of the atmosphere among Western allies.

      “We are really at a historic juncture,” the senior EU official said, arguing that the double hit of trade disruption from U.S. subsidies and high energy prices risks turning public opinion against both the war effort and the transatlantic alliance. “America needs to realize that public opinion is shifting in many EU countries.”

      Another top official, the EU’s chief diplomat Josep Borrell, called on Washington to respond to European concerns. “Americans — our friends — take decisions which have an economic impact on us,” he said in an interview with POLITICO.

      The U.S. rejected Europe’s complaints. “The rise in gas prices in Europe is caused by Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and Putin’s energy war against Europe, period,” a spokesperson for Biden’s National Security Council said. Exports of liquefied natural gas from the U.S. to Europe “increased dramatically and enabled Europe to diversify away from Russia,” the NSC spokesperson said.

      The biggest point of tension in recent weeks has been Biden’s green subsidies and taxes that Brussels says unfairly tilt trade away from the EU and threaten to destroy European industries. Despite formal objections from Europe, Washington has so far shown no sign of backing down.

      At the same time, the disruption caused by Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is tipping European economies into recession, with inflation rocketing and a devastating squeeze on energy supplies threatening blackouts and rationing this winter.

      As they attempt to reduce their reliance on Russian energy, EU countries are turning to gas from the U.S. instead — but the price Europeans pay is almost four times as high as the same fuel costs in America. Then there’s the likely surge in orders for American-made military kit as European armies run short after sending weapons to Ukraine.

      It’s all got too much for top officials in Brussels and other EU capitals. French President Emmanuel Macron said high U.S. gas prices were not “friendly” and Germany’s economy minister has called on Washington to show more “solidarity” and help reduce energy costs.

      Ministers and diplomats based elsewhere in the bloc voiced frustration at the way Biden’s government simply ignores the impact of its domestic economic policies on European allies.

      When EU leaders tackled Biden over high U.S. gas prices at the G20 meeting in Bali last week, the American president simply seemed unaware of the issue, according to the senior official quoted above. Other EU officials and diplomats agreed that American ignorance about the consequences for Europe was a major problem.

      10

  • #
    another ian

    Another “Net Zero” estimate

    “Office for Budget Responsibility Reveals the Crippling Cost of Net Zero”

    https://wattsupwiththat.com/2022/11/25/office-for-budget-responsibility-reveals-the-crippling-cost-of-net-zero/

    “In other words, that figure of £573 bn above is probably only a third of the true cost to the public sector. Meanwhile, as already noted, the private sector will also have to pay out much more in the quest for Net Zero.”

    00