Bits and Pieces

Car Swap: Latest news on this front. Last weekend I worked with a Toyota dealer. They offered a great trade-in value and had a used, 2008 Toyota Prius that would work for me. Mileage was a tad more than my trade-in, both in the high 90,000’s. However, the Prius has the premium features I wanted, all of those worked perfectly. Better yet, with one rear seat folded flat, my large walker-rollator would slip in just fine. The price was fair as well. A modest short term auto loan was arranged and I drove the car home.

So now, I can drive anywhere without worrying about a breakdown. The brakes are new. The power steering works like a dream, and I have no oil leaks whatsoever. Meanwhile, the car is a hybrid electric vehicle that so far has got me 34.5 miles to the gallon on regular gas. The trade-in got barely 15 miles per gallon and that was premium gas frequently costing well over $5 per gallon. The ride is stiff and sometimes uncomfortable, but the benefits outweigh that issue. I am a happy camper at this time.

Future of the World: there are only two drivers of the future: nature over time, and humankind behavior. The latter is truly destructive while the former is nature’s way, complex, long term, and purposeful in all its interrelationships. Humankind behaves as though it is in charge and control of the world; it is not and never has been. Mankind does not create nature or the world. It merely lives within the environment of what nature has provided. And yet humanity does control one thing: the destruction of the planet by way of its own, misspent behavior and greed. That last word is spelled – s e l f i sh.

Climate change is real. Global warming is melting the polar ice caps, glaciers are shrinking, and storms are more frequent and stronger. Together, ocean levels will rise and coastlines will change as water moves inland. Entire low lying island nations are threatened with extinction. Stronger storms suggest more wind damage, forest fires and floods. Tornadoes and hurricanes will wreak havoc in many regions. Cold weather masses will shift locations causing warmer winters and colder summers in a constantly changing regional pattern.

In short, lives will change as we adjust to climate change. This will have a huge effect on the economy and human health and safety. Ignoring these troubles is very bad public policy. And expensive. Best we learn what we can and adjust as we can to preserve our planet while surviving what we cannot change.

May 13, 2024

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