It isn’t easy being green. America’s would-be second lithium mine hit a major speed bump on Wednesday, as federal wildlife officials declared that a flower known to exist only on that property is endangered. 

An essential chemical element used in manufacturing batteries, lithium plays a starring role in the green energy movement’s myopic quest to replace fossil fuels. In Nevada, however, we get to observe the spectacle of green energy being thwarted by a different form of environmentalism.  

The official conferment of endangered species status on “Tiehm’s buckwheat” raises the hurdle for Ioneer, the Australian mining company that has for years been planning to build an open-pit lithium mine on federal land roughly midway between Las Vegas and Reno.  

Wednesday’s move by the Fish and Wildlife Service not only protects the 10 acres on which the plants are found in a 3-square-mile area, but also another 900 surrounding acres deemed as “critical habitat.”  

The declaration was prompted by litigation initiated by the Center for Biological Diversity. Environmentalists aren’t done yet: They say Ioneer’s plan for protecting the plant won’t survive federal scrutiny.

“I’m thrilled that Tiehm’s buckwheat now has the protections it so desperately needs for survival,” says Patrick Donnelly, Great Basin director at the Center for Biological Diversity. “Lithium is an important part of our renewable energy transition, but it can’t come at the cost of extinction.”

Before you blame mankind for the fact that Tiehm’s buckwheat is on the brink of joining the estimated 99% of the Earth’s all-time species that have already gone extinct, consider that, according to Reuters, “an apparent, unprecedented rodent attack wiped out about 60% of [the Tiehm’s buckwheat] estimated population in 2020.”    

Today, there’s only one operating lithium mine in the United States — the Albemarle Silver Peak Mine, which is found in the same region — near the California border — as the mine affected by Wednesday’s declaration. 

Plants and animals aren’t the only impediment to tapping more of America’s lithium reserves. A whopping 79% of the country’s known lithium is found within 35 miles of tribal lands. In many places, that’s already prompting protests by native American groups opposing mining on lands they consider sacred. 

Of course, it’s possible that there’s an as-yet undiscovered patch of Tiehm’s buckwheat somewhere else in Nevada. There are also more 17,000 prospecting claims for lithium in the state.

However, in an unintended consequence of government policies regarding endangered species, prospectors observing Ioneer’s woes are now incentivized to discretely eradicate any Tiehm’s buckwheat they happen to find near their claim.   

Authored by Karen Hunt (aka KH Mezek) via ‘Break Free’ Substack,

While researching my piece, The Truth about Luciferase, I came across a patent that blew my mind and I absolutely had to write about it.

The patent is described as “Systems and Methods for Mobile Sample Collection” and it has to do with drones.

We’re talking armies of drones of all shapes and sizes, down to the smallest gnat, working together in a “swarm” to take samples, administer drugs and regulate the health and behavior of ordinary citizens. The promise is that these drones will be deployed to make our lives easier—for our health and safety.

Embarking on this read, I would like to start with some important words:

metaverse, meatverse, wetware, software, hardware

Metaverse: a virtual-reality space in which users can interact with a computer-generated environment and other users.

Meatverse: you will not find this word defined anywhere on the internet. It is the word technocrats derisively use when describing the real world.

In June 2018, Oculus executive Jason Rubin sent an email to Facebook board member Marc Andreessen with the subject line “The Metaverse.” This paper was like the first page in the history of a new world, written by one of the gods.

Ruben described the Metaverse as a place where users “float through a digital universe of virtual ads, filled with virtual goods that people buy. There would be virtual people that they marry, while spending as little time as possible in the so-called ‘MEATVERSE’ — referring to the real world because humans are flesh and blood.”

We are assured that at a certain point, humans will prefer spending time in the razzle-dazzle metaverse rather than the drab and restrictive meatverse. And lest you think, oh what’s the big deal, Zuckerberg’s metaverse is on the way out, it isn’t. If he isn’t successful, someone else will be—whatever form it takes over the next 10 years or so.

We are just pieces of meat to our controllers.

Wetware, Software, Hardware:

The human body is now being described in terms that are similar to robots, making us seem as if our differences are only technical. The human body and central nervous system are “wetware” as opposed to the “software” and “hardware” of machines.

Technopedia describes wetware like this:

…where neural networks and similar artificial intelligence technologies would be described as hardware, the human brain that they attempt to simulate and model would be the “wetware.” Biological systems are described as wetware because of the water that makes up so much of the biological tissue of humans, animals and plants. The term “wetware” will become increasingly useful as technology makes its way into the fields of biology and biological engineering.

We are wet. Machines are dry. We have temperatures—both emotionally and physically. Machines do not. Defining humans with these new words adjusts us to accepting identification based on similarity or dissimilarity to machines.

It’s hard to fight against our controllers if we don’t even know who or what to attack. The biosecurity state is all pervasive. There isn’t one government, organization, or person to point the finger at.

As of July 2022, the United States is just behind China in camera surveillance of its citizens, with an average of two cameras for every 10 people in its major cities. The UK is in third place with one CCTV camera for every 16 citizens in its larger cities.

Ever since 9/11, we have been programed to accept constant surveillance for our health and safety. The January 6th attack on the Capitol building opened the door for even greater surveillance due to increased risk of “domestic terrorism”. As for online surveillance, in 2019 alone, the US government investigated over 800,000 of its own citizens personal data.

Thanks to Covid, citizens came to accept greater and greater levels of control.

A 2020 New York Times article described this post-Covid world we now live in:

Drones have been working as police officers, soaring over the banks of the Seine in Paris and the city squares of Mumbai, to patrol for social distancing violators.

They’re delivering medical supplies in Rwanda and snacks in Virginia. They’re hovering over crowds in China to scan for fevers below.

“Yes auntie, this is the drone speaking to you,” said one drone, speaking to an elderly woman below in an eerie bullhorn echo, according to a video published by Global Times, a state-controlled newspaper. “You shouldn’t walk about without wearing a mask.”

Global Times also published an account of another drone. A voice from above castigated a small child peering skyward while seated with a man who was violating quarantine rules by playing mahjong in public: “Don’t look at the drone, child. Ask your father to leave immediately.”

Drones can be equipped with so-called stingrays to collect information from people’s mobile phones, night-vision cameras, GPS sensors, radar, lidar (laser detection technology for creating three-dimensional maps of an area), as well as thermal and infrared cameras.

Frank Wang is the world’s first drone billionaire. His company DJI, headquartered in Shenzhen, has a 77% share of America’s consumer drone sales, according to this Bloomberg article.

The same drone surveillance system being used in Xinjiang, a region in northwest China that human-rights groups have described as a police state because of the oppression, horrific abuse, and confining to camps of as many as 1 million Uighurs, are being used by Flymotion, a Florida-based drone services company that uses its devices to support dozens of police departments. “DJI owns the global market,” says Flymotion CEO Ryan English.

Agencies in all 50 states have drones now, about 90% of them made by DJI, according to a recent Bard College study.

Now that we have figured out ways to connect machines with our bodies, creating the Internet of Bodies (IoB), drones can be used as intermediaries between our machine-controlled bodies and the elite who control it all.

IoB means that our bodies are “connected to a network through devices that are ingested, implanted, or connected to the body in some way. Once connected, data can be exchanged, and the body and device can be remotely monitored and controlled”.

The elite will no longer have to walk among us. They can live in safe zones, real-world paradises, while we live under constant surveillance, our only escape being the virtual worlds inside our devices and perhaps one day connected directly to our minds.

At any time, drones can swoop down and take samples from us, or inject us with whatever drugs AI determines we need.

Skin-like electronics are being made to monitor our health continuously, described by the United States government as “wearable electronics paired with artificial intelligence that could transform screening for health problems.”

Such a skin-like device is being developed in a project between the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory and the University of Chicago’s Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (PME). Leading the project is Sihong Wang. According to Wang, ​“Such a diagnosis, with health information being continuously gathered over an extended period, is very data intensive.”

Philanthropist Jennifer Pritzker, at left, and Illinois Gov. J.B. PritzkerPHOTO ILLUSTRATION: TABLET MAGAZINE; ORIGINAL PHOTOS: VINCE TALOTTA/TORONTO STAR VIA GETTY IMAGES; E. JASON WAMBSGANS/CHICAGO TRIBUNE/TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE VIA GETTY IMAGE

It should be noted that the Pritzker family, including Jennifer Pritzker (a male who identifies as transgender), “devotes their massive fortune to funding transgender ideology, or ‘synthetic sexual identities’ (SSI),” as described by journalist Jennifer Bilek.

Imagine a scenario where a drone, having evaluated you as being at risk of heart disease, implants a device on or in you that will monitor what you eat, when you eat, your heart rate, how often you exercise, how many hours you sleep. It will know if you commit the sin of smoking a cigarette or drinking a whiskey.

Perhaps AI will determine your son is really a girl. AI will know this, no matter if you say otherwise. It can administer drugs to facilitate your child’s “sex change.” What if as a result, you seem depressed or anxious? There are drugs for that, too.

One of the products being used to facilitate this is called stretchable electronics, a thin film of a plastic semiconductor combined with stretchable gold nanowire electrodes. You can see what it looks like in this short video. Research was funded by the U.S. Office of Naval Research, the National Science Foundation and a start-up fund from the University of Chicago.

Sub-millimeter microsensors tiny enough to inject under the skin is a step toward making tiny under-the-skin implants that continuously measure a person’s blood glucose, heart rate, and other physiological conditions a reality.

The small device, “approximately five centimeters square, can be placed directly on the skin for around-the-clock health monitoring. When the device turns color, the wearer knows something is awry.”

Other monitoring devices, according to Global Research are RFIDs:

RFID (radio-frequency identification) chips are implanted into a passport or driver’s license. RFID tags are small computer chips connected to miniature antennae that can be fixed to or implanted within physical objects, including human beings. The RFID chip itself contains an Electronic Product Code that can be “read” when a RFID reader emits a radio signal.

Hidden placement of tags. RFID tags can be embedded into/onto objects and documents without the knowledge of the individual who obtains those items.

Unique identifiers for all objects worldwide. The Electronic Product Code potentially enables every object on earth to have its own unique ID.

Massive data aggregation. RFID deployment requires the creation of massive databases containing unique tag data.

Hidden readers. Tags can be read from a distance, not restricted to line of sight, by readers that can be incorporated invisibly into nearly any environment where human beings or items congregate. RFID readers have already been experimentally embedded into floor tiles, woven into carpeting and floor mats, hidden in doorways, and seamlessly incorporated into retail shelving and counters, making it virtually impossible for a consumer to know when or if he or she was being “scanned.”

Individual tracking and profiling. If personal identity were linked with unique RFID tag numbers, individuals could be profiled and tracked without their knowledge or consent. (“Position Statement on the Use of RFID on Consumer Products,” Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, November 14, 2003)

The Association for Automatic Identification and Mobility touts (AIM)biometric identification as “an automated method of recognizing a person based on a physiological or behavioral characteristic.” This is especially important since “the need” for biometrics “can be found in federal, state and local governments, in the military, and in commercial applications.” When used as a stand-alone or in conjunction with RFID-chipped “smart cards” biometrics, according to the industry “are set to pervade nearly all aspects of the economy and our daily lives.”

Google is developing a device that can be implanted beneath a person’s skin in order to carry out diagnostic tests. The patent describes “a system for measuring and/or monitoring an analyte present in interstitial fluid in skin, capable of monitoring the blood and sweat of a wearer and transmit the results through an antenna to a companion device.”

But how will all of this be monitored? How will it be delivered? I did some digging into patents, and I found this one which the US government is implementing.

DOCUMENT ID: US 11517232 B1; Filed in 2015; DATE PUBLISHED: 2022-12-06; Inventor: Robertson Channing

The only problem is that today, when I clicked the link I had, it went nowhere. I spent hours trying to find the patent, to no avail. Fortunately, I read the entire patent and also copied most of it, so I am able to share it. I thought of abandoning this essay, but it is too important. If anyone can find it, I will be forever in your debt!

I did find this explanation and the drawing, which illustrates the different types and sizes of drones (just so you all know it exists):

US 11,517,232 B1SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR MOBILE SAMPLE COLLECTION Channing Robertson, Palo Alto, CA (US) Assigned to Labrador Diagnostics LLC, Wilmington, DE (US)Filed by Labrador Dlagnostics LLC, Wilmington, DE (US)Filed on Nov. 9, 2015, as Appl. No. 14/936,599.Claims priority of provisional application 62/077,023, filed on Nov. 7, 2014.Int. Cl. B64C 39/02 (2006.01); A61B 5/15 (2006.01); G05D 1/00 (2006.01); G08G 5/04 (2006.01)

CPC A61B 5/150748 (2013.01) [A61B 5/150847 (2013.01); B64C 39/024 (2013.01); G05D 1/00 (2013.01); G08G 5/04 (2013.01); B64C 2201/128 (2013.01); B64C 2201/141 (2013.01)]

So, let’s look into Systems and Methods for Mobile Sample Collection.

Imagine our world as a giant petri dish and we are all inside of it. Experiments can be conducted on our “wetware.” There will be no escape from the drones.

The drones being employed are described like this in the patent:

A “drone” as used herein may be a mechanical device, electromechanical device, other self-propelled device, or a robotic device that can use one or more modes of transportation such as but not limited to flying, swimming, rolling, crawling, wheeling, and/or other movement mode to travel to a subject.

A drone may also have at least one other capability such as but not limited to video surveillance capability, audio surveillance capability, sample collection, tissue penetration, and/or other capabilities currently known or may be developed.

(15) Optionally, some may test for a simple and/or rapid test initially; if a positive signal is detected, then the system may send more drones or send more sophisticated drones to the subject. Some may send a base station or other forward operating device to or near the location of the first drone to sample the area around that site.

(16) Optionally, the size and weight of the drone may be such that they are less noticeable to the subject. This drives to a certain length scale, possibly smaller than a mosquito having the ability to talk to one another, talk to a base station, guidance, autopilot, etc. . . . ). i) Optionally, one configuration may be one where each small flying drone (“gnat”) takes the same type of sample. Optionally, one configuration may be one where ii) each “gnat” takes a different type of sample (blood, sweat, tears, or other bodily fluid). Optionally, one configuration may be one where iii) multiple “gnats” take different types of samples.

(21) In one non-limiting example, the nested drones or nested vehicles may be in the form of sisterships, motherships, daughterships, or any single or multiple combination of the foregoing.

(24) In one embodiment, the mobile sampling system may combine autonomous technology with one or more swarm technologies, one or more motive/movement technologies, and/or one or more sample acquisition technologies.

(33) Location acquisition (for targeting or retrieval) may be by one or more of the following: vision, magnetically, prior GPS coordinates, chemically, electrically, radar, sonar, GIS systems, mapping, and/or other targeting system. Some may use targeting based on features such as but not limited to gas output, thermal signature, CO.sub.2 output, scent-based characteristics, chemical, UV, anything in the EM spectrum, or other signature characteristic of the target.

Acquisition may involve waiting for subjects to walk by or be positioned for sampling. Some may involve being positioned on a tree branch, perch, overhang, or other location above the subject S. Tentacles, webs, strings, or attachments lines may be deployed to assist in getting the sampling device to the subject S. The device may acquire sample from a subject’s finger, hand, forearm, ear lobe, ear cheek, or buttocks.

(38) This reduced volume more enables the embodiments here to use tick or mosquito type sample acquisition techniques because the desired sample size is so small.

(46) Most occupants could be clearly detected by their airborne bacterial emissions, as well as their contribution to settled particles, within 1.5-4 h. It should be understood that an occupied space is microbially distinct from an unoccupied one, and that individuals release their own personalized microbial cloud.

(47) Optionally, other characteristics of the subject such as but no limited to height, weight, sex, profile, thermal image, picture, or the like may also be associated with the microbial cloud sample to more confidently confirm a target.

(51) Optionally, sampling theory and statistics is used as part of one implementation in terms of disease or other outbreak detection.

52) In one embodiment, the population to be sampled is one that has signed up to be sampled. An example may be all patients associated with a particular health insurance company, doctor group, medical group, or other affiliation (health-related or otherwise). Subjects may wear beacons, identifiers, other devices to help facilitate target acquisition by the sampling device. Some may wear Bluetooth, infrared transmitters, or other devices now known or to be developed in the future.

(53) In one non-limiting example, there is an option for sampling weekly, monthly, or other interval. In one non-limiting example, such sample collection may be occurring and the subject may not even know it.

(55) In one non-limiting example, a subject’s bodily fluid is being tested hourly or other frequent interval without the subject’s explicit knowledge.

(62) In one non-limiting example, the sample acquisition from a subject may be in a form that is based at least in part on bio-mimicry of tick, leech, mosquito, or other natural blood sampler for sampling purposes.

(66) Optionally, some may fly and land on a surface and then crawl to the subject. Some may land and remain in the shower or bathroom or other desired area to facilitate sample collection.

And that’s it! Unbelievable what they have in-store for us! I hope it won’t give you nightmares. If people still mock and say it will never happen, then I don’t know what to tell you. I’m doing my best to inform as many people as will listen–myself included.

*  *  *

Break Free with Karen Hunt is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter and crusade against “defeating” the “woke mind virus” has caused panic among liberal Tesla drivers who now want to sell their electric vehicles. Others progressives waiting for Teslas are canceling orders because they no longer believe in Musk’s politics.

Cancelling my @Tesla Model X order that’s been unfulfilled for over a year now and selling my TSLA stock. They need a cancel option that simply says “Elon Musk”. I won’t give my money to someone that no longer shares the same values I hold important. Likely he never held them. pic.twitter.com/yhxSgJUxZw

— Tom Kulzer (@tkulzer) December 13, 2022

they asked for a reason
I said “Elon Musk’s Twitter” pic.twitter.com/mEHPxNPxnY

— Heather Anne Campbell (@heathercampbell) December 12, 2022

These progressives who are either selling their Teslas or canceling orders have been engrained by ‘woke’ culture that fossil fuels are evil and EVs will save the planet from a non-existent climate crisis that is just an idea in their head.

So naturally, these folks will be purchasing other EVs because they now view driving a Tesla as the same as wearing a ‘MAGA’ hat.

So San Fran residents will now buy tanks to own Musk, while conservatives in Mississippi will buy Teslas to own the libs.

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) December 16, 2022

As for climate alarmists’ predictions this summer that the world would burn, we have bad news for them as Arctic air poured into the Northern Hemisphere like a wrecking ball. The alarmists blame ‘climate change’ for every weather phenomenon, but no one bothered to tell them the climate has constantly been changing for millions of years.

A problem that non-Tesla believers could come across is ‘winter range anxiety’ depending on the EV. According to Recurrent, a research firm that tracks EV battery health, temperatures averaging between 20-30 degrees Fahrenheit will impact vehicle range. 

For Teslas, cold weather decreased the Model 3 Long Range’s range by -17%, the Model S P100D by -19%, and Model X 75D by -15%. Out of the list, Tesla wasn’t the worst.

Some of the worst declines, which many liberals have said they wanted to buy instead of Teslas, include Chevy Bolt by -32%, Ford Mustang Mach-E Premium AWD by -30%, and VW ID.4 -30%. 

My pronouns are he/him, I believe in science, and I support Dr. Fauci. @elonmusk’s continued bad actions kept me from buying a @Tesla and now I am ecstatic to have a @UAW-made @chevrolet Bolt EUV in my driveway! pic.twitter.com/8Jj3kLjaEB

— Eric Sorensen (@ERICSORENSEN) December 12, 2022

And one of the best EVs to survive cold weather was surprising the Jaguar i-Pace, which only lost -3% of range. Also the Audi e-Tron was -8%. 

Liberals ditching their Teslas will discover quickly what winter range anxiety means for their mobility if they go with a Chevy or Ford. 

By Irina Slav of OilPrice.com

China’s natural gas imports are set for a 7-percent rise next year as the country reopens after Covid lockdowns, which could aggravate an already tight supply situation globally.

The 7-percent import increase forecast was made by state-owned energy major CNOOC, which said, as quoted by Bloomberg, that it was already looking for LNG cargoes for next year.

The report notes that gas inventories at ports in the northern part of the country are depleting at a faster rate than usual because the weather is colder, pushing consumption higher, and this will, too, have an effect on future demand for imports.

What’s more, pipeline supply of natural gas from Central Asia is in decline, which means China will need to rely more on LNG in its gas import mix to make up the difference. And this means more intense competition for a limited number of cargoes between Asia and Europe next year as well.

This year, Chinese gas demand has been trending lower for most of the year, with imports declining consistently over the first ten months of the year, per a report by Energy Intelligence. LNG imports were down by a sizeable 21.6 percent over the ten-month period, reflecting the effects of lockdowns and other restrictions under the country’s zero-Covid policy.

Yet now this policy is being reversed, mass mandatory testing is being dropped and analysts expect a rebound in economic activity before too long. This will drive higher demand for energy and contribute to higher prices due to the tight supply situation in both oil and gas.

This reversal of Beijing’s Covid policy surprised many, who expected tepid demand for energy to continue in one of the world’s largest consumers. If activity rebounds fast, securing sufficient gas supply for the next heating season will likely become a major problem for most importers.

FTX founder and Democrat megadonor Sam Bankman-Fried’s ‘I’m Sorry, I fucked up‘, ‘It wasn’t me, but I’ll get to the bottom of this whole mess’ act needs some serious work, according to lawyers cited by Bloomberg.

1) I’m sorry. That’s the biggest thing.

I fucked up, and should have done better.

— SBF (@SBF_FTX) November 10, 2022

Bankman-Fried, who just filed a new application for bail before the Bahamian Supreme Court (set to be heard on January 17th), has been playing dumb and blaming competitors since day one.

For weeks, FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has been previewing a possible defense to criminal charges over the cryptocurrency exchange’s collapse: I made mistakes but I didn’t mean to do it.

But that’s probably not going to cut it now that he’s been arrested in the Bahamas and charged by federal prosecutors in New York, several lawyers not involved in his defense said. According to the indictment unsealed Tuesday, Bankman-Fried, 30, defrauded FTX customers and investors by using at least $1.8 billion of their money for personal expenses and risky bets by its sister trading firm, Alameda Research. -Bloomberg

“I wish things worked out in the end’ is more of a (guilty) plea allocution than a defense,” according to former federal prosecutor Harry Sandick. “It’s hard to see that being a triable defense. It’s hard to know what the whole thinking was in terms of those public statements, or if there was very much thinking.”

SBF’s current posture is aimed at suggesting the FTX meltdown was unintentional, but the eight-count indictment against him clearly lays out how he lied over and over again about fund transfers. What’s more, prosecutors likely have cooperating witnesses from FTX or Alameda who have flipped on SBF.

“Although this is an extremely high-profile case, the indictment is a no-nonsense, no-frills document,” said Jaimie Nawaday, another former federal prosecutor. “The factual statements are short and plain. The theories of fraud are very standard — lying to get money, lying about what you’re doing with the money.”

Accidentally co-co-commingled funds make my eyes rain pic.twitter.com/KwOTfiLUFe

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) November 30, 2022

While the bare-bones indictment doesn’t indicate what actual evidence the US government has against him, according to Nawaday, SBF’s public statements may have been more than enough rope for the FTX founder to have hung himself in court. If those statements are later contradicted, it would be devastating for his defense, Sandick also notes.

“There’s a saying that a false exculpatory statement is almost as good as a confession,” he said.

Robert Frenchman, a New York white-collar defense lawyer, said Bankman-Fried’s claims that FTX’s collapse resulted from management missteps aren’t all that convincing, even without the prosecution showing its hand. In particular, Frenchman said, the relationship between FTX and Alameda is hard to spin as innocent. -Bloomberg

“There’s some very troubling facts here that don’t fit the mismanagement narrative,” said Frenchman, adding “I think it’s very difficult to mount that kind of a defense when the defendant is alleged to have given secret preferential treatment to his own hedge fund. Those facts surrounding Alameda are going to be much tougher to defend. They look a lot more like fraud and deception than anything unintentional.“

Long-range weather models forecast the increasing possibility of a white Christmas for parts of the Northeast. 

“Some of the models are depicting a weather pattern taking shape that could result in very cold air pouring into the central and eastern United States next week — which could set the stage for a potential winter storm along the East Coast heading into Christmas weekend,” media outlet NJ.Com wrote. 

NY NJ PA Weather’s meteorologist Steven DiMartino said there’s still uncertainty around forecasts but says signs are emerging of a potential East Coast winter storm next week. 

DiMartino said atmospheric patterns and a few weather models show what appears to be a developing storm that has the “potential to be pretty impressive.” 

“However, before anyone starts putting out snow maps or anything else that you might see on social media, understand there are a lot of moving parts in this storm,” he noted.

“You have a disturbance in the subtropical jet stream, interaction with the Gulf stream — which is a very warm body of water off the East Coast — and an impressive Arctic air mass driving towards all of that rising air,” DiMartino continued.

“When you have all these features come together, usually a big storm evolves … but as far as the details are concerned, I caution you not to jump on every model guidance that shows up, because a lot can change over the next couple of days,” he added.

DiMartino explained more in the YouTube video. 

DiMartino said the storm’s exact timing, track, and impacts are still unknown. Such forecasts will be made available in the coming days. 

Another meteorologist by the name of Joe Bastardi, who runs WeatherBELL Analytics LLC, tweeted:

“Christmas week blizzard over the east with severe cold liable to cause thousands of travel-related cancellations as the pattern evolution been trying to show based on old school methods seem to be working out. Euro going ballistic.” 

Christmas week blizzard over the east with severe cold liable to cause thousands of travel-related cancellations as the pattern evolution been trying to show based on old school methods seem to be working out. Euro going ballistic pic.twitter.com/OeBTZiEsZp

— Joe Bastardi (@BigJoeBastardi) December 15, 2022

We pointed out this week that a blast of Arctic air will sweep over parts of the Lower 48 around Christmas.

Meteorologists have yet to lock in any forecast, and there’s still a degree of uncertainty about the storm’s details, though some weather experts believe parts of the Northeast could be looking at a white Christmas. 

Authored by Dorothy Li via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem announced on Dec. 13 new proposed legislation to restrict farmland purchases by foreign countries, namely China.

“With this new process, we will be able to prevent nations who hate us—like Communist China—from buying up our state’s agriculture land,” Noem said in a statement.

“We cannot allow the Chinese Communist Party to continue to buy up our nation’s food supply, so South Dakota will lead the charge on this vital national security issue.”

The proposed plan marked the latest step by the Republican governor to clamp down on the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) influence in her state.

The statement revealed that Noem and state legislators planned to create a new board, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States–South Dakota, to review proposed agricultural land purchases by foreign entities. The board, which would consist of three ex officio members and two experts in the agricultural industry and national security, would recommend either approval or denial of land sales.

“We grow the world’s food, and we need to protect the security of that food supply for our kids,” said state Sen. Erin Tobin, a sponsor of the proposed legislation.

Besides food security concerns, lawmakers also view the land that could be owned by CCP-affiliated entities as problematic from a national security perspective.

“With vital national security resources like Ellsworth Air Force Base, we cannot afford for our enemies to purchase land in South Dakota,” said state Rep.-elect Gary Cammack, another sponsor of Noem’s proposal. “We want to keep this land in the hands of South Dakota agriculture producers.”

Chinese Purchase of US Farmland

The plan comes amid growing scrutiny of U.S. farmland being owned by Chinese investors. In September, 51 House Republicans raised national security concerns about the sale of 370 acres of farmland in North Dakota to Fufeng Group, an entity with close ties to the CCP.

The Chinese agribusiness proposed to set up a corn mill plant on the site. The proposed project is located about 12 miles from the Grand Forks Air Force Base, home to sensitive U.S. drone, satellite, and surveillance technology.

The site could become “the ideal location to closely monitor and intercept” the Air Force base’s “exceptional intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities,” the lawmakers wrote in a letter dated Sept. 26 addressed to several Biden administration secretaries.

Despite strong pushback from lawmakers and local residents, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) stated that it wouldn’t block the deal, because the farmland purchase is “not a covered transaction” under the panel’s jurisdiction, according to a Dec. 13 statement from CFIUS Staff Chair Andrew Fair.

The total value of Chinese-owned U.S. agricultural land has jumped more than 20-fold in the past 10 years, according to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In 2020, Chinese-owned U.S. agricultural lands were worth more than $1.8 billion, compared to $81 million in 2010.

A total of 14 states have introduced plans to restrict foreign acquisitions on U.S. soil, according to Sens. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) and Tom Cotton (R-Ark.). The two Republican senators are pushing for a federal-level ban on foreign-owned private U.S. farmland.

In South Dakota, the current law limits foreign ownership of farmland to 160 acres, according to Noem’s office.

Other Actions Against the CCP

Earlier this month, Noem had called for an immediate review of all investments to determine if taxpayer money is going to companies that “pose a threat to our national security.”

“South Dakotans deserve to know if their taxpayer dollars are being invested to benefit the Chinese Communist Party,” she said in a Dec. 8 statement.

The governor said she wanted the South Dakota Investment Council, a panel managing investment of the state’s pension, to complete the review in seven days.

“The Investment Council has ensured that South Dakota has the best-funded pension in the country. But it is not possible to make good deals with bad people,” Noem said. “If this review shows that such investment is taking place, then the Investment Council should propose alternative investment options.”

Authored by John Seiler via The Epoch Times,

As we head toward the end of another year, I’m remembering several friends who left in 2022 for cheaper states. And I’m thinking about several other friends who are planning on leaving in 2023 or 2024.

The fact is California is difficult, often impossible, to live in if you’re in the middle class. The wealthy can afford to live here, although they often leave too, because that 13.3 percent top income tax rate really digs in, especially when they dream of moving to 0 percent Texas, Florida, or Nevada. The poor suffer, but California has a generous welfare state, so it’s easier in many ways for low-income residents than living in another state.

It’s the middle class, the rock bed of any society, that bears the brunt of California’s brutal living conditions—amidst the sublime weather. There are three areas where the middle class is hammered: taxes, high housing costs, and a broken education system. Let’s look at them as we peer toward 2023: a little winter organizing of our political mentalities.

1. Taxes.

 The middle class does not pay that 13.3 percent rate on millionaires, but it does pay what long was the “top” tax: 9.3 percent. California’s income tax rates were indexed for inflation in 1978. But that was only after a decade of inflation pushed the middle class into the then-top rate of 9.3 percent. That is, today the middle class pays at a rate originally intended only for the very rich.

The middle class in no other state pays income taxes that high. Of the states, seven have no income tax at all. And 37 have a top rate below 9.3 percent.

Here are the five states after California with top income tax rates above 9.3 percent: Hawaii at 11 percent; New York 10.9 percent; New Jersey 10.75 percent; Oregon 9.9 percent; and Minnesota 9.85 percent.

However, for the middle class, the percentage is lower. For someone making $80,000 a year, here’s the marginal percentage tax rate for a single filer:

• California 9.30

• Oregon 8.75 (and no state sales tax)

• Minnesota 6.80

• New Jersey 6.37

• New York 5.97

• Hawaii 5.86

Year after year, that adds up. Moreover, in California, $80,000 really isn’t middle class, but lower middle class. Admittedly, New York, New Jersey, and Hawaii also are high-cost states in many areas.

But those states have much lower taxes for the middle class. And it’s easier to be in the middle class in those states because most things, especially taxes and property, are cheaper.

2. Housing. 

At Chapman University’s 45th Economic Forecast, held Dec. 13 and co-sponsored by The Epoch Times, economist and President-emeritus Jim Doti brought up an interesting number I hadn’t heard before. “Home prices increased 400 percent since 1990” in California, he said. “5.2 percent per year. Overall inflation then was 2.6 percent—roughly half. Home prices increased two times CPI,” the consumer price index.

I came to California just before that, in 1987, and rented a nice one-bedroom apartment in Huntington Beach for $600 a month. In 1993 I moved to a nearby place and the price was about the same, $700 in the late 1990s. The rent crept up over the years to $1,000 in 2010, still tolerable. Then the rent started soaring, and I had to move. Today those two places rent for $2,429. My income sure didn’t go up four times in that period.

The median price for a home in 2021 was $854,280 in Los Angeles County and $1.2 million in Orange County—although both have dropped a bit in 2022. And the median price for all California was $554,866 in 2020, lower because the Inland Empire and other inland areas are cheaper.

But here are the median home prices in the other states I listed above for their relatively high income taxes:

• Hawaii $636,451

• Massachusetts $422,856

• Oregon $361,970

• New Jersey $335,607

• New York $321,934

And here are some states with no income tax:

• Washington $409,228

• Nevada $301,753

• New Hampshire $296,163

• Florida $ $245,169

• Texas $207,301

But according to the U.S. Census bureau, the median household income in California in 2021 was only $84,097, compared to $70,784 for the national median. That is, it’s 19 percent higher in the Golden State—which hardly covers the vastly greater expense of taxes and housing in California.

Which makes me wonder why I’m still living here. These two things—the highest taxes and second-highest housing prices—make it almost impossible for the middle class to accumulate capital to buy a home, start a business, or even raise a family.

3. Education. 

I’ve written several articles here in The Epoch Times on the horrible state of the public schools in California, such as “Lessons From Running for California Schools Chief: Interview,” on Nov. 14. Test scores, already among the worst among the 50 states, dropped further during the excessive COVID-19 school lockdowns.

Then there’s the politically correct social engineering pushed on the students, beginning with critical race theory, now mandated in state schools under the guise of “ethnic studies.”

No wonder several of my friends left because they didn’t want their kids indoctrinated. A couple other friends with toddlers are planning to leave the next couple of years before the kids go to kindergarten.

Private schools are an option but cost money the middle class doesn’t have. Home schooling is another option but takes dedication some families don’t have, and is next to impossible if both parents are working—itself virtually a necessity in this expensive state.

Some school boards are kicking back against the indoctrination. Temecula Valley Unified School District on Dec. 13 banned critical race theory, while also adopting a resolution condemning racism. But few districts do this. And how long can Temecula and other districts hold out on the side of the parents and students against the pressure from the state government and the powerful teachers unions?

Conclusion: Adios, Middle Class

It’s simply impossible to be in the middle class in California, especially if you have kids. It’s no wonder more people keep leaving. At the Chapman Forecast, Doti provided the latest data, “Net domestic migration has been negative since 2011,” meaning more people leaving for other U.S. states than came here. “For the most recent year, 2021, it was negative 280,000.” If that keeps up, during the 2020s decade, California would lose 2.8 million people to other states.

Gov. Newsom touts his “California Way” as a contrast to the policies of the conservative governors of Florida and Texas. “They’re doubling down on stupid, and we will not follow their path, we’re going in a completely different direction,” he boasts. But the out-migration shows the state’s middle-class residents themselves are going in a completely different direction from Newsom—out of the state.

The MSM, which spent the better part of five years celebrating whenever a conservative news outlet was banned, suppressed, or demonetized by big tech, are suddenly turning Elon Musk’s temporary ban on a handful of left-wing journos into a First Amendment catastrophe.

To recap, Twitter on Thursday suspended several left-wing reporters without explanation – with Musk later suggesting they had ‘doxxed’ him at some point. Those kicked off the platform include, Keith Olbermann of MSNBC, Ryan Mac of the NY Times, Anthony Webster of Bellingcat, Donnie O’Sullivan of CNN, Micah F. Lee of The Intercept, Matt Binder of Mashable and Drew Harwell of the Washington Post.

The media reacted as if Musk had just committed two January 6ths and a 9/11 on their First Amendment rights – while remaining completely tone-deaf to their own behavior – such as when journalist Alex Berenson was kicked off the platform and had to sue his way back under Twitter’s previous management.

imagine being this out of touch where this is an actual headline https://t.co/wDKm4U0Kel

— Barbarian Capital (@BarbarianCap) December 16, 2022

The Washington Post‘s resident doxxer Taylor Lorenz flipped out and complained in a “Twitter Spaces” forum about being doxxed herself.

“It’s just so rich to hear him [Musk] complain about doxxing and harassment,” said Lorenz. “I mean, I am doxxed and harassed constantly on this app. That doesn’t mean that everything on this app has to be moderated, but I do think users deserve more control over their own experience.”

Taylor Lorenz is complaining on Twitter spaces about being doxxed and harassed. The irony!

Also her contact at Twitter was fired 😂. No more special treatment! pic.twitter.com/pbmj3THv8e

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) December 16, 2022

CNN called the banning of Donie O’Sullivan “impulsive and unjustified.”

WaPo executive editor Sally Buzbee said Musk’s decision “directly undermines” his stated ‘free speech absolutism.’

The suspension of [Post reporter] Drew Harwell’s Twitter account directly undermines Elon Musk’s claim that he intends to run Twitter as a platform dedicated to free speech. Harwell was banished from Twitter without warning, process or explanation, following the publication of his accurate reporting about Musk. Our journalist should be reinstated immediately. -Sally Buzbee

Democratic operative lawyer Marc Elias suggested that ‘big media’ may not remain on Twitter – after the New York Times issued a statement Thursday evening calling the bannings “questionable and unfortunate,” and called for Twitter to offer an explanation. On Friday, the paper privately asked staff not to fight with Musk on Twitter, Semafor reports.

let’s find out https://t.co/mRPPw876Tk

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) December 16, 2022

Sorry Marc, they aren’t going anywhere.

Instead, NBC News temporarily suspended senior reporter Ben Collins for his “editorially inappropriate” coverage of Musk.

“NBC News had already benched one of the journalists who has reported on Twitter and been harshly critical of Musk. NBC News temporarily suspended tech reporter Ben Collins from covering Musk on NBC and MSNBC airwaves” – Semafor https://t.co/8VDqQrFC60

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) December 16, 2022

Even Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) admitted that “Twitter is a tragic necessity for elected officials.” 

Rep. @RitchieTorres won’t leave Twitter, “a tragic necessity for elected officials” https://t.co/92lxPhRXUk pic.twitter.com/xVkcZsnaXr

— Ben Smith (@semaforben) December 16, 2022

As usual, (actual) journalist Glenn Greenwald has a spot-on take:

Watching the same liberal corporate journalists who explicitly agitated for a regime of social media censorship suddenly and righteously wrap themselves in the flag of free speech is simultaneously nauseating and hilarious – but also encouraging and inspiring. Welcome, indeed!🙏 https://t.co/o2UZhEwfe9

— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) December 16, 2022

Continued:

Every *genuine* free speech advocate I’ve ever known has tried to convince people to object to censorship *on principle*. But knowing many are bereft of principles – eg liberal journalists – we try the tactical approach: this regime is bad because it will be used against you.

I’d be genuinely happy if this were a transformative moment: where liberals who’ve spent years demanding online censorship now see its evils since it’s directed at them and their friends. But of course it’s not that: they’re complaining because they think *they* should be exempt.

CNN and NYT journalists and executives: “Wait. When we were demanding more of this, we didn’t mean that this should be done to *us*! This was supposed to be used only against right-wing cretins, conservative journalists, and other species of peasants — not against **us**.”

Just last month, EU officials were threatening @ElonMusk with sanctions and other legal reprisals if he doesn’t censor more.

Now they’re threatening him with sanctions due to last night’s bans.

Do you see the issue? Zero principles. Just whether the right people are censored: pic.twitter.com/Uv46J6jJJ0

— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) December 16, 2022

Yet another conservative journalist objecting to the Twitter bans. I can count on one hand the liberal employees at major media corporations who ever objected to Big Tech censorship before last night. They wanted more of it. This is what “principles” are:https://t.co/78a16kP0ZF

— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) December 16, 2022

Authored by Autumn Spredemann via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

As the snow flies and temperatures plummet, regulatory agencies and analysts alike warn that residents in multiple U.S. states are at an elevated risk of dangerous winter blackouts.

States such as Texas and North Carolina, and also the Great Lakes and New England regions are in the highest risk category, according to a report from the North American Electric Reliability Council (NERC).

Meanwhile, a “large portion” of the U.S. power grid is at risk of insufficient electricity supplies during peak winter conditions, the agency concluded in the same analysis.

Although climate change advocates claim that severe weather events are the primary culprit, energy insiders say tight fuel supplies and an outdated electric grid play a critical role in potential blackouts.

Conservative estimates this year put the cost of critical power grid and infrastructure upgrades at $4 trillion, with the use of supplemental nuclear power; the price tag jumps another $500 million without nuclear energy.

The Biden administration approved a $13 billion stopgap measure on Nov. 18 to “modernize and expand” the power grid. However, people in the energy industry say it will take months or years for U.S. residents to see the difference.

Falling Behind

“There is a significant gap to upgrade aging grid infrastructure to meet net-zero mandates and maintain reliability, and we are running out of time,” analyst Kim Getgen told The Epoch Times.

Getgen is the CEO and founder of Innovation Force, which tackles complex issues such as America’s energy crisis. She says the Biden administration’s infrastructure investment is a good start, but it’s exactly that, just a start.

“Upgrading aging infrastructure, system hardening, and resilience measures while complying with the evolving set of new cyber and physical security threats will require even more investment,” Getgen said.

She added that the American Society of Civil Engineers gave the U.S. power grid a C- grade on its 2021 Infrastructure Report Card.

Getgen maintains that a greater level of investment is needed, saying, “we can’t maintain the millions of miles of distribution and transmission lines that deliver the power, and we can’t harness the potential of renewable clean power.”

And although upgrades are crucial, some energy specialists say the U.S. electrical grid won’t become efficient overnight, or even by next winter.

“It’s important to remember that something as complex as the electricity grid takes time to change,” Ted Kury, director of energy studies at the University of Florida, told The Epoch Times.

Working in the university’s Public Utility Research Center, Kury says the regulatory process for new utility projects moves slowly, no matter how much money is thrown at it.

“It’s a process with numerous safeguards, but that also means it takes more time. It’s reasonable to think that we’ll start seeing impacts in the next few years,” he said.

Eric Hendrick, senior consultant in risk management at Customized Energy Solutions, agreed with Kury’s assessment.

“Given the politics involved in any legislation, it’ll take some time before any of these funds trickle down to the states that need the funds,” Hendrick told The Epoch Times.

During a press statement, John Moura, the director of reliability assessment for NERC, said there are “more areas at risk” of blackouts this winter amid power generation and fuel supply challenges.

U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm also noted in a November brief that 70 percent of the nation’s power grid is more than 25 years old.

Grid upgrades aside, strained natural gas and coal supplies are also, quite literally, fueling higher power-outage risks.

Fuel Factor

Not only are millions of Americans facing a greater risk of losing power this winter, they’ll also be paying more for energy.

Homes that run on natural gas can expect to pay 28 percent more. For those using heating oil, a 27 percent price spike is expected, and a 10 percent increase is likely for households that rely on electricity alone for heat.

The increases are due to a combination of higher market prices and demand, according to an Energy Information Administration analysis.

And with the continued push toward Biden’s net-zero energy goals, an additional 11,778 megawatts of coal generation was retired in 2022. Meanwhile, the demand burden has shifted heavily toward natural gas, which is already encountering supply issues.

Read more here…