I have to admit that the first thing I thought of when I heard of Trump’s win was a 4-year pause in EV mandates and subsidies. Yes, Elon Musk has become an ally of Trump, but Trump has said that he would get rid of previous EV policies “on Day One.”
As every regular reader knows, I have always thought he would win the election. I think his victory is as much a repudiation of Biden as it is of Harris. I also think the American people have shown a distaste for woke, for DEI, for identity politics. I think that distaste, in some instances, was stronger than the distaste for Trump.
Back to EVs…timing is everything. Remember that Formula 1 will begin using synthetic fuels in 2026. If the US government is no longer subsidizing EVs in any way and synthetic fuels prove to be successful, then maybe US companies will begin to produce such fuels and we will stop the foolish, excessively wasteful move to EVs.
In any event, I remain sad that our choice for President was the one we had. Yesterday, a political canvasser rang our doorbell. I didn’t actually know who it was, but they parked so far up the driveway and so close to our house I thought it might be one of our regular vendors.
I finally opened the front door and walked through the courtyard to its (locked) door. The person said he was just making sure everyone was going to vote (he was a Republican “operative”). I told him I would rather attempt to remove a rhinoceros’ appendix through its anus with a paperclip than to waste my time voting. (Thanks, Ztemoc, for that line you once uttered in college many years ago.) I said I hated American politics, which is true, and then I went off and told him that my wife and I were thinking about leaving the country, which is not true. I was far from calm.
The main reason I am not registered to vote is that if I register then my name and address would be in a publicly accessible database, which is not a good idea in this day and age. One of the more annoying commercials this political season was one in which I was reminded that “while my vote would be private, whether or not I had voted would be public and my friends and family could see if I voted.” Why does anyone think that’s incentive to vote?! ANYONE would be able to see if I voted and then pester me asking me for my choice or worse.
By the way, we are supposed to have a right to a secret ballot, a secret vote. A publicly accessible database showing if I voted violates that right, in my opinion. While we’re on this topic, so does mail-in voting. As soon as the election worker opens your mail-in ballot, your secret ballot has been compromised. Besides, if you can’t be bothered to go to a polling place, especially with early voting, then you shouldn’t have a vote. Yes, I believe you should have to show ID when you vote, but that if you voted should not be a matter of public record.
Back to the actual election, while it appears control of the Senate will flip to the Republicans, it is possible that control of the House will flip to the Democrats. If the latter occurs, then–obviously–Trump will have a far more difficult time in executing his agenda, whatever that is. That would also make a Democrat, presumably, next in line for the Presidency after the Vice-President. (As I write this, not all House races have been called. It is also possible the Republicans will hold the House.) Is it too late to vote for Open Trench?
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I must admit that, regardless of the outcomes, I am relieved the awful TV and radio political ads will be over. I am also glad that the visual pollution of all of the political signs by the sides of the roads will be gone.
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Of course, I could write much more about the election, but I am done with that topic, at least for today. However, I have one “political” note as reported in this Why Evolution Is True post titled, “Biden administration lets Medicaid pay for Native American ‘traditional medicines.’” All I can write, is WTF! Oh, woke is a cult detached from reality.
I thought I had more to write, but I am out of gas. See you next time.
#TheAftermath