Sputnik

The New York Times – generally considered a mouthpiece for US militarism and ruling class interests – published an article Saturday agonizing over the possibility that former President Trump would withdraw from NATO in a second term.

The report, although rife with opinion and speculation, was published as a news item in the Saturday edition of the controversial newspaper.

“For 74 years, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization has been America’s most important military alliance,” read the article. The authors went on to suggest there is “enormous uncertainty and anxiety” throughout Europe and among “American supporters of the country’s traditional foreign-policy role” (which has resulted in the death of at least 4.5 million since 2001).

“There is great fear in Europe that a second Trump presidency would result in an actual pullout of the United States from NATO,” said James G. Stavridis, a former NATO supreme allied commander. “That would be an enormous strategic and historic failure on the part of our nation.”

Despite NATO’s ostensible existence as an “alliance” between the United States and European countries Stavridis, like every other NATO supreme commander, is American.

Benjamin Norton, the founder and editor-in-chief of Geopolitical Economy Report, has derisively labeled the alliance as the “Nazi Arming and Training Organization” for their support of Nazi elements. Historically, the alliance elevated former German Nazis to key positions of power throughout the Cold War and supported terrorism, assassinations, psychological warfare, and false flag operations through a covert effort known as Operation Gladio.

The strategy was duplicated in Latin America where the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) utilized and provided safe haven for former Nazis like Klaus Barbie.

Despite ostensibly existing as an anticommunist alliance, NATO remained hostile to Russia after the dissolution of the Soviet Union and continued expanding east in violation of the agreement with the country during the final days of the Cold War. Recently the US government-backed Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe laid bare the country’s intention to balkanize Russia in a conference advocating for “decolonization” even as the United States continues to support the “colonization” of the Gaza Strip.

Recently the consequences of US hegemony in Europe have been made clear as Germany endures a deep economic crisis brought about by the country’s participation in US-led sanctions on Russia.

Via https://sputnikglobe.com/20231211/us-ruling-class-fears-trump-would-withdraw-from-nato-1115515681.html

By Troy Aidan Sambajon

Christian Science Monitor

Earlier this year, California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a new vision for the San Quentin State Penitentiary, centered on rehabilitation and job training, inspired by another prison system that has halved its recidivism rate – in Norway.

The re-imagining of California’s most notorious prison, infamous for housing the nation’s largest death row population, could prove pivotal in how the United States rethinks rehabilitation and staff wellness within prisons.

About 2 out of 3 Americans released from jails and prisons per year are arrested again, and 50% are re-incarcerated, according to the Harvard Political Review. In Norway, that rate is as low as 20%.

As more U.S. states seek to improve their correctional systems, the Norwegian model could prove key. It aims to create a less hostile environment, both for people serving time and for prison staff, with the goal of more successfully helping incarcerated people reintegrate into society.

Why are U.S. prisons in need of reform?

While the United States makes up less than 5% of the global population, its prison system holds approximately 20% of the world’s total prison population. And even though it’s been on a slight decline since 2008, the total population of incarcerated Americans has increased by 500% since 1970, according to The Sentencing Project.

“Overcrowding, violence, and long sentences are common in U.S. prisons, often creating a climate of hopelessness for incarcerated people, as well as people who work there,” says Jordan Hyatt, associate professor of criminology and justice studies at Drexel University.

Correctional employees experience some of the highest rates of mental illness, sleep disorders, and physical health issues of all U.S. workers, a 2018 Lexipol report found.

Nearly 19% of prison workers reported symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder – a rate six times higher than that found in the general population. Moreover, 100% of correctional officers were exposed to at least one VID (violence, injury, death) event during their career, according to a 2011 survey by the Department of Justice.

So why try Norway’s model?

Making a prison environment more humane will translate to a more efficient prison system overall, experts say. And the Norwegian model prioritizes rehabilitation and reintegration over punishment. Safety, transparency, and innovation are considered fundamental to its approach. Core practices aim to create a feeling that life as part of a community continues even behind walls and bars, says Synøve Andersen, postdoctoral research criminologist at the University of Oslo.

In some Norwegian prisons, incarcerated people wear their own clothes, cook their own meals, and work in jobs that prepare them for employment, says Dr. Andersen. They have their own space, too, since single-unit cells are the norm. “There is a goal to provide people living in a unit together with a shared common space with a kitchen, washer and dryer, and lounging space,” she says.

While critics argue that people in prison should not have access to daily comforts, Dr. Andersen disagrees. “Imprisonment, the deprivation of liberty itself, that is the punishment.”

Instead, while they are separated from society, incarcerated people should experience normal, daily routines so they can have increased opportunities to reform without being preoccupied with fear of violence from other inmates, she argues.

The principle of dynamic security means correctional officers also must have more complex social duties besides safety and security, including actively observing and engaging with the prison population, understanding individuals’ unique needs, calculating flight risks, and developing individualized treatment plans.

Washington state’s Lt. Lance Graham works within restricted housing and solitary confinement units, an environment he says lacks empathy and connection with those incarcerated. “We never had the opportunity to connect with the people in our care.”

But when visiting Norway’s isolation units, he saw their staff was much more engaged with the prison population – and was much happier.

“This program really promotes staff wellness, changing the relationship that you have with the people in your care,” says Lieutenant Graham. “So you’re not going to have as many instances of fight or flight syndrome in your daily work. You reach common ground and talk like normal folks.”

“If you actually want to change the prison environment, invest in staff,” says Dr. Andersen. “They’re there all the time. They’re doing the work.”

Who is trying the Norwegian model?

Amend, a nonprofit from the University of California, San Francisco, partnered with four states – California, South Dakota, Oregon, and Washington – to introduce resources inspired by Norwegian principles and sponsor educational trips to Norway for U.S. correctional leaders.

At California’s San Quentin, Governor Newsom hopes to emphasize inmate job training for high-paying trades such as plumbers, electricians, or truck drivers. His budget proposal allocates $380 million to repurpose a factory into a center for innovation focused on providing social services and breaking cycles of crime. Mr. Newsom aims to complete the project before he leaves office in 2025.

In Washington state, prison staff began developing supportive working relationships with the incarcerated in their care by developing individual rehabilitation plans.

“Basically, we find out as a person, what their goals and interests are and then we work with them on that, which had never really been happening a lot in restricted housing,” says Lieutenant Graham. “So it’s brought massive changes to the state.”

In North Dakota, former Director of Corrections Leann Bertsch says after revamping the training and responsibilities of prison officers, interactions between staff and inmates felt respectful and calmer.

“Instead of getting as many grievances from the resident population, I started getting what we call positive behavior reports on our staff. … I think it really helped shift the culture to one that’s more restorative versus punitive,” says Ms. Bertsch.

The Pennsylvania Department of Corrections collaborated with the Norwegian Correctional Services to pilot Little Scandinavia, a transformed housing unit operated at half the regular capacity to allow for individual cells. The on-duty officers at Little Scandinavia have reported enjoying their work much more now and there haven’t been any reports of violence since its opening in May 2022, says Dr. Andersen.

Norway receives much attention for its low rate of recidivism, but some experts disagree on the measure as a rate of success. “[Recidivism] is not just a product of the correctional system. It has everything to do with your social safety net, your network, your support structure, and your job opportunities,” said Dr. Andersen.

Also, the physical dimensions and layouts of prisons differ drastically between the U.S. and Norway. Instead of large, centralized prisons in the U.S., Norway utilizes a system of small, community-based correctional facilities that focus on rehabilitation and reintegration into society.

While 8% of prisons in the U.S. are private prisons, according to the National Institute of Corrections, all Norwegian prisons fall under the public sector, and some collaborate with nongovernmental and volunteer organizations to provide services to people.

[…]

Via https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Justice/2023/1206/Can-US-prisons-take-a-page-from-Norway-Five-questions

LeoHohmamn.com

Could this be the latest predictive programming, similar to ‘Event 201’ was for the Covid pandemic?

As we approach December 31, you will inevitably hear people across the world celebrating the end of another dreadful year and cheering on the arrival of brighter times in 2024.

It can only get better, right?

I beseech you, dear readers, not to participate in this fantasy. We should expect and prepare for things to get worse before they get better. The globalists who run the world have told us in the wide open what they have planned and it’s not pretty.

The year 2023 was no cakewalk, for sure, but it could very well be the last year in which we enjoyed a semblance of normalcy. There was no pandemic. War broke out but it didn’t come to our shores. Our paper money still buys food for our Christmas table and energy to heat our homes, even if it’s more expensive than in previous years. The fact that this worthless fiat paper is still capable of being traded for food, shelter and other hard assets is a blessing that might not be available to us one year from now. You might want to take full advantage of this while you can.

With the world’s superpowers remaining far apart in terms of how we move forward into a new era marked by artificial intelligence, digital currencies and total information awareness (i.e. the surveillance state), we should expect that the globalists will succeed in pushing the world closer to full-blown World War III next year. When the powderkeg finally blows, that war will come to U.S. soil.

We also face the destabilizing effects of another U.S. presidential election in November 2024. Regardless of which way that election goes, I see the globalists exploiting it for more chaos, confusion and division, an environment in which their Luciferian agenda thrives.

The globalist elites have done their best to inform us ahead of time of what to expect. They talk a lot about cyber attacks. Not the little ones we hear about daily. No, they’re talking about massive ones that will cause widespread panic among the people.

In fact, they are fond of using words like “catastrophic” and “apocalypse.” (See article from Jan. 25, 2023, by Popular Mechanics titled A Catastrophic Mutating Event Will Strike the World in 2 Years, Report Says)

Jeremy Jurgens, the managing director of the World Economic Forum, stated at the WEF’s annual summit in January 2023 that a disrupting cyber event would likely take place before 2025. Well, 2023 has come and gone and we have not seen any debilitating cyber event. If Jurgens’ prediction proves accurate, then that would leave 2024 as the year for this horrific event to go down, because it would need to happen before 2025.

Klaus Schwab himself, the top dog at the WEF, warned a couple of years ago about a coming major cyber attack that will make Covid look like “a small disturbance,” shutting down the power grid, which would upend the communications, transportation, banking and healthcare sectors.

We know that something catastrophic needs to happen in order for the globalists to be able to fully implement their plans for a “Great Reset” of the world order.

It could be an EMP or nuclear war. But a series of major cyber attacks shutting down the banking and communications infrastructure seems like a more likely scenario because it would allow the globalists to shut down online truthtellers and use the chaos and confusion to round up their enemies. Then, when their mission is accomplished, they simply turn the infrastructure back on and continue on the road to total dictatorship, minus the annoying truthtellers like myself and so many others.

An EMP attack, on the other hand, would take 10 years or more to recover from and set the globalist surveillance state back decades.

We have been warning about the death of the petrodollar for many months, and while the movement in that direction has been very slow, it doesn’t mean that it isn’t happening.

There have been some developments that perhaps keep the normies of the world fast asleep and unaware of where we are heading economically.

Take, for example, the U.S. stock market, which has continued on an upward trend in recent months.

The price of gold spiked upward for a brief few days last week, then ticked back down.

But don’t be fooled. The U.S. dollar is doomed.

And a huge news story basically ignored by the corporate media and little noticed even by the conservative media took place at the end of November.

Wall Street seemed not even to notice.

A major global oil producer, the United Arab Emirates, abruptly stopped selling its oil in U.S. dollars and is joining forces with the BRICS nations, of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa to forge ahead into a de-dollarized world. BRICS recently expanded its membership to include the UAE, along with Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and Argentina (Argentina rescinded its membership after electing conservative firebrand Javier Milei).

What this means is the U.S. will no longer be able to benefit from a situation in which it continuously increases its military budgets and runs massive deficits financed by China, Saudi Arabia and other sovereign states. In fact, China and Saudi Arabia, two of the biggest financiers of U.S. debt, have already started unloading hundreds of billions of dollars in U.S. treasuries. This marks the beginning of the end for global dollar dominance and, unless the U.S. wins World War III and is able dictate the terms of the peace, it will mean the end of U.S. geopolitical dominance.

Changes of this magnitude in the global economic pecking order do not happen without a fight on the battlefield. That’s the real reason why we are heading to World War III. It has nothing to do with Ukraine’s or Israel’s difficulty in protecting their borders, or even the confrontation between Taiwan and China or mounting tensions between the two Koreas. The fact that all of these flashpoints are showing signs of exploding is simply a symptom, not a cause, of the economic upheaval enveloping the world. Pax Americana, which has ruled the day since the U.S. emerged from World War II as the stongest nation standing, is being unraveled as we speak.

As the world shifts from fiat currencies to digital currencies it remains to be seen who or what will be in control of this new digital system. The fiat paper system was dominated by the United States, but we see myriad countries forming a coalition that believes perhaps the new digitized system should not be so weighted toward the benefit of one Western country and its closest allies. We will only find out which dog in this fight ends up on top after World War III has been fought and we end up with a clear winner and loser, and who knows how long that will take.

The plan to upend the world order by ditching the petrodollar could still backfire on the BRICS. But at the moment, things seem to be moving ahead, albeit slowly, in their favor.

As noted by the site QTR Fringe Finance, the BRICS nations now control most of the world’s nuclear arsenals, oil, precious metals, diamonds and rare-earth minerals. It’s time to wake up, folks, and take note of what’s happening. This transition to local currencies being used in global transactions will bring down the fiat currency known as the petrodollar and usher in a new global order. This is likely the reason why the U.S. and NATO are reacting so aggressively to put down Putin because in order to preserve what’s left of the post-World War II liberal rules-based order, led by the United States, it’s paramount that the U.S. separate Russia from the other global power backing BRICS, which is China.

As long as China, Russia and the major oil-producing states are allied, there is no future for U.S. hegemony in global affairs. The days of the U.S. browbeating and blackmailing the leaders of nations around the world will be over — its foreign policy would actually be forced to treat foreign heads of state as equals, rather than vassals. That would mean the end of the U.S. military-industrial complex, which would also bring an end to the endless wars the U.S. military has been forced to fight since the end of World War II. So while it will come with much economic pain, perhaps there will be a silver lining?

[…]

Via https://leohohmann.com/2023/12/10/wef-warns-2024-likely-to-bring-catastrophic-cyber-event/

DOD file image: Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III is greeted by Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant in Tel Aviv, Israel, Oct. 13, 2023. 

Zero Hedge

Without doubt, military superiority belongs to Israel, and yet Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has raised eyebrows by saying Israel faces a “strategic defeat” if it doesn’t reduce civilian casualties in Gaza. The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza says over 15,200 – mostly women and children – have died since the start of the war.

The White House has questioned the official death count from the Palestinian side; however, even by conservative estimates, civilian deaths are in the multiple thousands. In a recent New York Times article entitled “Gaza Civilians, Under Israeli Barrage, Are Being Killed at Historic Pace” (which proved controversial), the Times said more civilians have died in Gaza since Oct. 7 than have died in Ukraine after nearly two years of grinding war with Russia.

Lloyd Austin focused his Saturday comments on the long-term effects of mass civilian slaughter and not only the coming global backlash, but the potential for further radicalizing an entire population:

“The center of gravity is the civilian population and if you drive them into the arms of the enemy, you replace a tactical victory with a strategic defeat,” Austin said in a speech at the Reagan National Defense Forum in Simi Valley, Calif., on Saturday.

The secretary added that he has personally pushed Israeli leaders to avoid civilian casualties, prevent violence to settlers in the West Bank.

“We will continue to press Israel to protect civilians and to ensure the robust flow of humanitarian aid,” he added. —The Hill

Despite this very rare commentary and warning, Austin still emphasized US will remain Israel’s “closest friend in the world” and American support will never waiver. He said Washington’s backing of Israel remains “crystal clear.”

Watch Austin’s remarks given in California over the weekend:

Already, nations of BRICS and throughout the Global South have voiced their increasing outrage over such a high civilian death toll. China and Russia have led these criticisms of Israel, and the US continues to be isolated in its ‘blank check’ support for Israel at the United Nations.

The Guardian recently observed of what has long been typical concerning Gaza-related resolutions at the UN: “The US has ended up looking quite badly isolated after only 12 countries joined Washington and Israel at the UN general assembly in opposing a motion calling for a sustained humanitarian truce leading to a cessation of hostilities.”

At the same time, US Congressional hawks continue to add fuel to the controversy with statements like the below, wherein Sen. Lindsey Graham rejects and lashes out Austin’s messaging on ‘strategic defeat’…

Graham flatly rejected the idea, saying “He’s so naïve! I mean, I just lost all confidence in this guy.”

“How about focusing on protecting our soldiers, men and women in Syria and Iraq?” Graham continued. “Strategic defeat would be inflaming the Palestinians? They’re already inflamed! They’re taught from the time they’re born to hate the Jews and to kill them.”

Graham continued calling it “really naive” to say that Israel is fighting against a “tranquil population” that was “only inflamed after Israel goes in to defend itself.”

“I don’t want to kill innocent people,” he said. “but Israel is fighting not just Hamas, but the infrastructure around Hamas… Strategic failure is letting Hamas stand.”

This is similar to the conclusion of entrepreneur and geopolitical analyst Arnaud Bertrand, who emphasizes, “There’s no overstating how extraordinary such a statement by Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is, warning Israel it’s heading towards ‘strategic defeat’.”

Below are the rest of Bertrand’s observations in response to SecDef’s Austin’s surprisingly blunt and negative assessment [emphasis by ZH below]…

* * *

“In this kind of a fight the center of gravity is the civilian population. And if you drive them into the arms of the enemy you replace a tactical victory with a strategic defeat.” Essentially saying what is obvious common sense: you create more Hamas than you destroy by killing civilians.

And as such what Israel has been doing so far is nothing but dig the hole it’s in deeper and deeper… After, obviously, it’s doing all this with Pentagon weapons and support in a myriad of ways, so Austin’s words are pretty disingenuous…

BUT they see Israel as their “unsinkable aircraft carrier” in the region so they must feel that were they to stop this active support it’d “sink” pretty quickly, which they aren’t ready to do. Which actually goes to illustrate just how deep the hole Israel – and America – have put themselves in.

The “unsinkable aircraft carrier” is taking water and needs constant US support to avoid sinking but the US is now telling them publicly – in very frank terms – that their actions are actually accelerating the sinking…

[…]

Via https://www.zerohedge.com/military/pentagon-chief-unleashes-controversy-saying-israel-could-face-strategic-defeat

Episode 13 Etruscan Government

The Mysterious Etruscans

Dr Steven L Tuck (2016)

Film Review

Between 800 and 600 BC each Etruscan city was ruled by an elected king. Etruscan aristocrats voted to appoint one of their members as king (for life). In the late 7th century BC, some Etruscan cities were ruled by “tyrants.” The Greek word tyrant referred to a populist ruler whose from the lower classes and who worked to the detriment of the aristocracy. Athens, Syracuse, Corinth, Cerveterei and Rome all had a history of replacing aristocratic kings with populist tyrants. None were despots in the modern sense of the word tyrant.

As growing trade led to an expanding middle class, the Etruscan city-states overthrew their last kings, replacing them with participatory republican government (as Rome did). Etruscans tore down the palaces and mansions of their former aristocrats and replaced them with orthogonally planned (grid-based) cities with square homes of equal size. In Etruria, peoples assemblies met annually to elect magistrates to run their cities and priests their religious shrines.

All outward trappings of Rome’s republican government were of Etruscan origin: (eg the white toga of citizenship and the purple striped toga designating a magistrate.) Initially Rome consisted of a loose network of cities (like the Etruscan leagues), until they opted for central government. Fifty percent of magistrates elected to run Roman cities were Etruscan.

Government under the Etruscan leagues was similar to that of the US Continental Congress under the Articles of Confederation. The leagues had no power to wage war, tax or regulate trade although they were allowed to make treaties with non-Etruscan states. Following Rome’s conquest of Etruria in the 3rd century BC, each Etruscan city negotiated a separate peace with Rome.

*Prior to the 5th century, Etruscan Italy was made up of three 12-city leagues, In addition to Etruria there was a league in southern Italy (in the modern day Campania Region) and in northern Italy in the Po River Valley. Each league met annually at Etruria’s principle religious sanctuary Voltumnae (located between Orvieto and Viterbo in modern Italy) to appoint an official to oversee the league.

Film can be viewed free with a library card on Kanopy.

https://www.kanopy.com/en/pukeariki/watch/video/239710/239635

RF Safe

Introduction: On December 10th, SpaceX is set to conduct a significant test of its Starlink satellite technology, involving the irradiation of populated areas in 13 states across the USA. Thus creating control groups between different populations of microwave exposure from space.  This event, while a leap in technological advancement, raises profound ethical concerns. It mirrors the structure of well-known scientific studies by the National Toxicology Program (NTP) and the Ramazzini Institute (RI), where some rats were exposed to RF radiation while others were not, to assess health risks.

The Parallels with NTP and RI Studies: Both the NTP and RI studies were landmark in their exploration of RF radiation’s effects on health. In these studies, rats were exposed to varying levels of RF radiation, and their health outcomes were compared to those of unexposed rats. The findings were significant: increased risks of certain cancers, including brain and heart tumors, in rats exposed to RF radiation levels similar to what humans experience with cell phone use.

Simulating Human Experimentation: The upcoming Starlink test, in essence, sets up a similar experimental design but with humans as subjects. By selectively irradiating 13 states, it creates a scenario where some populations are exposed to heightened levels of RF radiation, while others are not. This situation is alarmingly reminiscent of the NTP and RI studies but lacks one critical element – consent.

Unconsented Human Experimentation: The Nuremberg Code, established post-World War II, underlines the importance of voluntary consent for any experimentation involving human subjects. The Starlink test, by exposing unaware and non-consenting populations to potentially harmful radiation, breaches this fundamental ethical principle. It transforms these populations into unwitting participants in a large-scale public health study.

What the NTP and RI Studies Found: The NTP study found clear evidence of tumors in the hearts of male rats exposed to RF radiation, as well as some evidence of tumors in the brains and adrenal glands. Similarly, the RI study observed an increase in heart schwannomas in male rats. These results point to a potential risk to human health – a risk that the Starlink test might inadvertently explore without ethical oversight.

The December 10th Starlink test raises critical ethical questions about the unconsented exposure of human populations to RF radiation. Drawing parallels to the NTP and RI rat studies, this event could be seen as a real-world, uncontrolled human experiment. As we advance technologically, it is imperative that we do not lose sight of the ethical considerations essential to protect public health and uphold human rights.

The Contemporary Concern: Microwave Technologies in Space

At RF Safe we would like to pivot to present-day concerns of electronic warfare, particularly focusing on the deployment of new microwave technologies in space, such as SpaceX’s Starlink service. While primarily commercial in nature, it raises the theoretical possibility that these technologies could be weaponized. With hundreds of satellites capable of beam-forming and concentrating power in small areas, there is a potential for misuse under the guise of technological advancement.

The deployment of technologies like SpaceX’s Starlink also touches on deeper ethical considerations, resonating with principles laid out in the Nuremberg Code. The Code, established post-World War II, underlines the imperative of informed consent and understanding potential risks in any experimental scenario involving human subjects. While primarily framed in the context of medical research, the essence of these principles extends to the deployment of new technology with unproven health impacts. The experimental nature of deploying such satellite systems, potentially exposing various populations to different levels of RF radiation, can be seen as a form of unconsented experimentation.

With SpaceX’s Starlink service planning to use frequencies in the 1910-1915 MHz and 1990-1995 MHz bands, which closely align with those examined for health risks (1947.47 MHz and 1977 MHz), the need for informed awareness and rigorous scientific scrutiny has never been more paramount.

[…]

Via https://www.rfsafe.com/the-december-10th-starlink-test-a-human-experimentation-paralleling-ntp-and-ri-rat-studies/

Daily Sceptic

Achieving Net Zero means building 80 million kilometres of new and refurbished power lines within 17 years, equivalent to wrapping the Earth 2,000 times with new electricity grid capacity. All the high voltage lines built in the last century will need to be built again by 2040 to benefit from all the intermittent power produced by the vast number of wind turbines. The ecological costs of all this can only be guessed at. Electricity cables are made of aluminium and copper and strung on giant pylons made of steel and supported by large concrete bases. For their part, wind turbines are a menace to both avian and oceanic wildlife, consume vast quantities of raw materials, have a limited lifespan and are an increasing blight on both inland and offshore landscapes.

If the International Energy Agency (IEA) gets its way, you ain’t seen nothing yet. The roll-out of high voltage lines will be on an unprecedented scale. In a report on global electricity grids issued to coincide with COP28, the IEA states that “an unprecedented level of attention from policymakers and business leaders is needed to ensure grids support clean energy transitions and maintain electricity security”. Major changes in how grids operate and are regulated are said to be essential. Annual investment in grids, which has remained broadly stagnant, needs to double to more than $600 billion a year by 2030.

The Australian science journalist Jo Nova is in no mood to be understanding: “Remember, it’s not their fault that renewables need far more land, more space, more backup and more infrastructure – it’s our fault we didn’t build a world ready for their holy energy.”

The IEA paints a world where electricity grids are becoming a “bottleneck” for transitions to Net Zero emissions. While investment in renewables has been increasing rapidly, global investment in grids “has barely changed”. In Europe, policymakers can speed up progress on grids by “enhancing planning, ensuring regulatory risk assessments allow for anticipatory investment, and streamlining administrative processes”. In plain English this means ripping up local planning laws in over-populated Britain and blanketing the country with millions of giant electricity pylons. These will be required to bring energy to urban areas from power intermittently generated far away in the North Sea and off the Scottish coast.

It is perhaps no coincidence that the British Government recently set out “major plans” to speed up connections and rapidly increase capacity on the electricity grid. The press release cunningly linked it with a £960 million government investment in “green industries”. The new package is “expected” to bring forward £90 billion of investment over the next 10 years. The Government promised that it will “reward” those living closest to new infrastructure with up to £1,000 a year off their electricity bills. In another part of the release, this is downgraded to communities “could” benefit, and the bung is limited to 10 years.

Whatever the money is spent on, it is likely to be chickenfeed compared with the growing £12 billion annual subsidy paid by electricity consumers to the producers of renewable energy. But the next British government will face an empty exchequer and soaring state debt. Lack of finance along with the end of low interest rates and free money printing is likely to kill many of the green fantasises currently being peddled by collectivist Net Zero fanatics. It is becoming clearer by the day, to an increasing number of people, that renewable energy is unreliable and uneconomic, and has an insatiable requirement for financial subsidy.

Emeritus Cambridge Professor Michael Kelly has long been a critic of the blind, un-costed rush to Net Zero. The U.K. electricity grid will require upgrading from top to bottom, he wrote in a recent GWPF essay. Leaving aside the massive roll out of long-distance transmission lines required, he noted the inadequacies of all the local cabling and sub-stations built before the need to charge electric cars and run heat pumps. “The whole distribution system will need to be upgraded… the work will be extraordinarily expensive, but without it there will either be regular brownouts, or drivers will be told where and when they can charge their batteries,” he explained.

Professor Kelly believes it is a failure of the British political machinery, notably the work of the unelected Climate Change Committee. “We have set out to decarbonise the economy without anyone having thought through all the engineering issues, let alone put a cost on the exercise,” he concluded.

But as Jo Nova observes, it is all our fault. “Apparently, we should have paid attention and built the right grid and now due to our laziness we will have to rush in another 80 million kilometres of interconnectors, just like that,” she writes Tell the children they’ve been lied to, she concludes. “The Green future is an industrial wasteland of concrete and steel built to line the pockets of billionaires and bankers.”

[…]

Via https://alethonews.com/2023/12/09/net-zero-requires-new-high-voltage-power-lines-to-be-wrapped-around-the-earth-2000-times-within-17-years/