Longer Step: Ideas for Justice and Sustainability

  I'm not sure what consumer product companies should do about their advertising. The US has become so polarized that we now have Republican beer and Democrat beer. Republican lumber and Democrat lumber. I know a lot of people who would never eat at Chik-Fil-A (I won't, partly because of their owner's far-right politics, and partly because their food is poisonous, at least to me), and some who don't shop at Home Depot (I do), or will shop only at Lowe's (I shop there sometimes, but it's not as convenient a location, and I think THD is by a slight margin the better-run store).  It's interesting. The hate seems to be mostly coming from the Right side. Maybe I'm just missing it, but I don't see liberal groups espousing hatred and violence against various factions of the Republicans (OK, I know one woman who wants to pee on Sen. McConnell's grave, but he won't know, and that will probably just help the flowers there. It doesn't seem quite as ...

  Re: Sudden, dramatic growth in worldwide gov't support for modern (hybrid) winegrapes!   Friends, if you thought that modern grapes ("hybrids") play just a minor role, and are not relevant to your life or to this planet's future, then you need to think again. I have never seen such an outpouring, in just the past few months, of major news from wine regions all around the world, dropping their (stupid) prohibitions against modern grapes, and suddenly embracing them as their regions' salvation for the future. (I want to say "duh," but I need to be professional.) I include many of the latest news stories about this, below. What's the impetus for this? In many regions of the world, it is becoming impossible to grow traditional European winegrapes consistently successfully, due to climate change (higher high temps; unexpected late Spring and early Fall severe cold snaps; worsening droughts; early arrival of Fall, etc.). Sometimes the trigger is the loss...

 As small banks are failing due to lousy management, I've been thinking a lot about why we need banks. We actually don't. America is addicted to debt. We have to have a good credit score, in order to get a job, get an apartment lease, get a mobile phone, get cable TV service, etc. If you avoid debt in your life (as many of our immigrants do), you are significantly punished in the US. Having a good credit score has become proof that you are a reliable person in non-financial ways. Without debt in America, you are a lesser person. Think about that. 1. Isn't it interesting that a good credit score, which proves you are a trustworthy person, can only be obtained if we buy lots of stuff on credit? Meaning, if we buy lots of stuff. Hmm--I wonder if big businesses had anything to do with this system of compulsory borrowing?  2. In most other countries, people have far less debt, or often, no debt at all. It's seen as a sign of poverty, of hopelessness. 3. And "cheap debt...

  Most of us know that embracing diversity in human-to-human relationships is vital, and leads to better results in terms of overall justice, fairness, and group achievement. But diversity in many other areas is also important. Such as, diversity in your yard! Today I'm thinking about my neighbor's support of "No Mow May," where the idea is to allow flowers in what used to be your grassy lawn, in order to help important insects and other small animals. Golf course-style lawns are useless monocrops which hurt the planet. If you can't/won't just "not mow" (and I can't do that, due to HOA rules), then why not set your mower deck much higher, which will allow low flowers like clover, chamomile, and dandelions to flourish? And while you're at it, maybe stop wasting money on inorganic fertiizers and pesticides (which are poisonous killers)? Your planet will thank you. We should all be striving for diversity in our yards. Have a happy, diverse day! ...

Let's talk about why none of us really needs a traditional bank. 1. Today, most banks are really screwing their customers by paying near-zero interest on deposits, while the bank earns 5% or so on mortgages and car loans. That is a far greater spread for the bank than was the case historically. In contract, the larger/safer investment funds like Vanguard or Fidelity are paying about 5% on money markets and short-term bond funds. That's where most of our cash kitty needs to be. The pure greed of the big banks is the reason why none of us should be using them. Otherwise, it's like we are masochistic and enjoy being abused. The banks do not treat us like customers--they treat us like resources to be stolen from. 2.  First Republic Bank is down 50% today, as depositors pull out their money: On the one hand, the bank was greedy and got upside down on stupidly-unhedged long-term T-bill purchases--purchases which proved too risky as interest rates rose, and any high school economi...

 How does this relate to the blog's topic of justice and sustainability? Because growing native grapes is much easier on the planet than growing Euopean grapes here, which need frequest sprays that can kill off beneficial insects and soil organisms, and they need tractor fuel, to apply those sprays, which pollutes the air. I've written a book on Modern (hybrid) grapes and why more grapegrowers should be growing them: Modern Grapes for the Pacific Northwest.  I hosted a winetasting that featured Mission wines (see below) and six mostly-award-winning Muscadine wines from a North Carolina winery (made from Noble, Magnolia, and Carlos grapes). My ancestors moved from Scotland to North Carolina and fought the British there in the Rev War, and later they fought the North from Tennessee in the Civil War, and I went to school and met my spouse in Tennessee, and then we lived in Texas, so aside from certain current political issues, I am a South-loving person and I love to ...

  Thesis: Any time you see a mass layoff ( hello, McDonalds HQ !), it means upper management did a horrible job running its business. Senior officials of huge companies have access to the best planning and forecasting tools/consultants/data, and if there is need for a downsizing (which there shouldn't be for McD's, as its earnings are strong now), that can usually be accommodated via natural attrition and slowed-down hiring, with maybe a few targeted terminations for poor performance, but never a mass layoff. And it would be nice to see more companies demonstrate some loyalty to the poeple who work hard to help the company succeed. Shame. It is therefore the most-senior management who should be terminated, because it is they who have failed.