OCTOBER 2015
POLITICS & TPP
Politics & TPP seems to be turning into a monthly column. In
June I decried the TPP. August I wrote about Media and
Technology. September about Abbott's downfall by falling
Polls. (Caused, like Rudd's downfall by unfavourable press?)
Now the TPP is reported by News
Limited as having being passed by
everybody excepting for a few votes by US Democrats. Hillary is
simultaneously under heavy attack by Murdoch papers. A warning
perhaps to other recalcitrant?
And Drudge is mooting that the legal implications of the TPP may well
cause his blog to end.
Hey Malcolm, was this all your idea, or were you always pro the TPP?
NB. It goes without saying that
the TPP is Murdoch's baby.
VOLKSWAGEN
Last month I wrote about the NOX scandal. I finished with:
So it would not surprise me if the US EPA
had been given a few surreptitious pointers about Volkswagen NOX
pollution by one of the (Your guess is as good as mine) petrol engine
car manufacturers.
After further research, for passenger cars, the EPA requires NOX
emissions be less than (<) 0.043 g/Km, while Euro5 (2009) requires
< 0.18 g/Km and Euro6 (2014)< 0.08 g/km. So the US EPA was
400% & 200% more rigorous than European NOX (Euro5 & Euro6)
standards.
The main issue seems to be that NOX contributes to the creation of
tropospheric ozone which in turn contributes to the creation of
smog. The word SMOG is derived from the combination of the
words SMokey fOG. The
atmospheric
pollutants that contribute to the formation of smog are
released in the air when fuels are burnt. When sunlight reacts with
these gases and fine particles, the non fog precursor of smog is
formed. Smog is a health hazard, especially for asthmatics and
other breathing challenged people.
NOX (together with Sulphur Dioxide) also acidifies rain.
Acid rain has been a problem since the 19th century. Among other
problems, acid rain makes soil acidic which reduces fertility.
Of course there is no good fix. One way to reduce NOX is to run a
"rich" (meaning surplus of fuel) engine. That will produce lots of
Carbon Monoxide and lose a lot of efficiency (i.e. less MPG). The
other way would be chemical treatment to remove NOX from the
exhaust. I would hazard that would be expensive.
NARRATIVES
AND INTERNET
What media does is create narratives,
and hence political success for it's favourites. A particularly
good example is now on display in Australia.
Malcolm Turnbull is the darling of the national broadcaster (ABC ~ I
think the Labour Party appointed current director). Malcolm is
also favoured by the SMH (Sydney Morning Herald). To complete the
circuit, he has just signed off on the TPP, thus making him Rupert's
BFF.
And will you look at the Polling figures! Malcolm has risen from
around 51% to about 70% in about one month! Unbelievable!!
The problem for mass media is that although it is more efficient,
it is losing out to DIY. Information is now spreading by word of
mouth (i.e. Facebook et al). And this is reflected by other DIY
industries, such as bnb and uber.
Some wealthy industrialist said it first. "The internet is the
greatest destroyer of wealth". (well, since the wheel or fire
maybe).
All those moneymaking politically regulated monopolies are dead.
It will be interesting to see the coming battle.
My money is on the masses. But then, maybe the masses are dumber
than I give them credit for.
barvennon@hotmail.com