The apocalyptic worldview hidden in Trump’s letter to Pelosi
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The apocalyptic worldview hidden in Trump’s letter to Pelosi, By Thomas Lecaque , WP, Thomas Lecaque is an assistant professor of history at Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa.
Dec. 19, 2019 There are moments fertile for apocalyptic anxiety — numerologically specific dates, perhaps, or seemingly significant ones like the year 2000 — but nothing sparks the apocalyptic imagination like a time of existential distress. For President Trump, that moment is now. In response to an impending impeachment vote in the House of Representatives, he sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Tuesday that reveals more than now-familiar tantrums and rage. This text is a window into his own eschatology, his theology of the End Times. For Trump, impeachment is not a political problem: It is the climax of a holy war that he must win.
………what Trump’s letter is: a warning framed as a missive, meant not for Pelosi’s eyes alone but as a broader declaration of Trump’s worldview, a chronicle of his reign, a threat of impending peril for the United States and a vision of history centered on Trump himself. It is, in effect, an apocalyptic text, more reminiscent of the eschatological letter-chronicles of the past than any legal document of rebuttal. The only things missing are the horsemen.
The text opens with the president protesting “the partisan impeachment crusade” of the Democrats in the House. The word choice of crusade, of course, no longer reflects the papally issued holy wars of the Middle Ages — indeed, “crusade” is used routinely for any political movement seen as being overly zealous against a particular target. But Trump’s use of “crusade” gives a framework for the central apocalyptic crutch of his entire administration: the notion of an existential, good-vs.-evil, apocalyptic duality surrounding his term of office that includes him as a semi-messianic figure.
And that framework of holy war never really leaves the text. Its tenor suggests that to challenge Trump is, somehow, to violate the righteousness of Trump’s presidency itself. But the text goes further, arguing that the Democrats are attacking America at its core. Impeachment, according to Trump, “display[s] unfettered contempt for America’s founding and your egregious conduct threatens to destroy that which our Founders pledged their very lives to build.” The very next line argues that Pelosi’s claims to pray for the president are “offending Americans of faith,” that the statement “is not true, unless it is meant in a negative sense. It is a terrible thing you are doing, but you will have to live with it, not I!”
……… in the form of quasi-religious dogma, suggests that Democrats opposing Trump are at war with the righteous. The framing of Trump’s letter builds on this foundation, suggesting that the conflict is a holy war: a war for American democracy, as well as a war between “Americans of faith” and those who oppose Donald Trump: the Democrats, the liberals, secular America, etc.
All of this constitutes a claim to ongoing authority and righteousness, but as with other apocalyptic texts, it is also a call to action for those who would preserve that righteous authority. True patriots, it suggests, must enlist in the holy war to preserve the Trump era — one that goes on and on and on, time everlasting. The president himself acknowledges as much. “I write this letter to you for the purpose of history and to put my thoughts on a permanent and indelible record.” The letter is not meant to be read by Pelosi and the House Democrats, though it certainly will be — it is meant to rouse his supporters, to announce the great revelation: They are living in a time of great change, of great hope in the form of Trump’s millenarian kingdom, and of great fear, from the forces of darkness assaulting American democracy in the form of the Democratic Party. This is the eschatology of Trump: The final battle is here, in the impeachment, and must be fought to give them the Kingdom of Trump on the other side. https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2019/12/18/apocalyptic-worldview-hidden-trumps-letter-pelosi/
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Western Australia’s first big battery joins Kalbarri solar and wind microgrid — RenewEconomy
A 5MW/2MWh battery dispatched to Western Power’s Kalbarri microgrid, to help deliver cheap reliable renewable power to the W.A. resort town. The post Western Australia’s first big battery joins Kalbarri solar and wind microgrid appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via Western Australia’s first big battery joins Kalbarri solar and wind microgrid — RenewEconomy
Rooftop solar takes the heat off ageing fossil fuel generators — RenewEconomy
Rooftop solar takes the heat off vulnerable fossil fuels plants as temperatures hit record highs in Australia, and conservatives hope for power outages. The post Rooftop solar takes the heat off ageing fossil fuel generators appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via Rooftop solar takes the heat off ageing fossil fuel generators — RenewEconomy
Victoria solar farm owners losing $1 million a day from grid constraints — RenewEconomy
Restrictions on four Victorian large-scale solar farms in mid-September have taken 150MW of solar capacity out of the system and is costing more than $1m lost revenue per day. The post Victoria solar farm owners losing $1 million a day from grid constraints appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via Victoria solar farm owners losing $1 million a day from grid constraints — RenewEconomy
Solar powered mines now commercially viable without need for subsidies — RenewEconomy
Zenith Energy says success of 5.5MW solar plant at remote WA mine site shows the technology can be deployed at mines without government support. The post Solar powered mines now commercially viable without need for subsidies appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via Solar powered mines now commercially viable without need for subsidies — RenewEconomy
Energy Insiders Podcast: Australia’s energy future is renewable, and digital — RenewEconomy
AEMO’s head of system design and engineering Alex Wonhas joins our last podcast of 2019 to discuss Australia’s energy transition and the Integrated System Plan. The post Energy Insiders Podcast: Australia’s energy future is renewable, and digital appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via Energy Insiders Podcast: Australia’s energy future is renewable, and digital — RenewEconomy
COP25: Never have so many governments done so little for so many — Systemic Disorder
It’s said that it is better to laugh than cry. But what do we do when a situation has become so beyond parody that laughter is impossible? As Australia burns, the world is about to finish its second hottest year ever, the seas rise, polar melting is worse than previously modeled and the sixth mass […]
via COP25: Never have so many governments done so little for so many — Systemic Disorder
The Week’s Climate and Nuclear News- Australia
The marathon climate talks in Madrid had a rather disappointing outcome. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk8McVmQRDI While the USA was excluded from the conference, other fossil-fuel addicted nations, Australia, Saudi Arabia, and Brazil did their best to sabotage the cause for climate action. Meanwhile the valuable perspective from women was largely ignored. From the top down in climate discussions, to regional and local talks in developing countries, women’s voices are generally excluded.
The nuclear lobby is working quietly away to get nuclear power accepted as “green”, thus getting not only ‘respectability’, but also hefty financial advantages. They’re having minor success in Europe. The European Union’s sustainable finance debate was bogged down in the question of including nuclear power. It ended up with a weak inclusion of nuclear power as a “sustainable activity’, but it still has to be agreed by the European Parliament, which has insisted on its “no” to nuclear.
Some good news – The Global Deal for Nature.
AUSTRALIA
CLIMATE Prime Minister Scott Morrison is on holidays overseas, as fires burn across Australia. Australians are reminded of the tourism slogan that Morrison created – #wherethebloodyhellareyou?
New South Wales’ bushfire conditions are getting worse. In blistering heat, Perth’s bushfire will keep burning for days. Ominous forecast for Australia’s bushfire dangers. Bushfire near power plant (just as well it’s not a NUCLEAR power plant) Australia’s rainforests used to be too wet to burn. Not now. 250m tonnes of CO2 emitted from Australia’s bushfires.
Swedish youth climate activist Greta Thunberg hits out at Australia’s quest for climate loopholes talks. No legal or moral basis for Australia’s Kyoto accounting fudge, new analysis shows.
NUCLEAR. Liberal-Party-dominated committee recommends removing Australia’s ban on nuclear power. Albanese attacks Coalition’s nuclear ‘fantasy’ as Greens say report should ‘alarm all Australians’. Energy and Emissions Reduction Minister Angus Taylor rejects call for partial lift of nuclear power.
In fealty to the global nuclear industry, the Liberals line up the nuclear dump site, amendments to law, deepwater port.
In the rush to get a nuclear waste dump site, the Dept of Industry, Innovation and Science has ignored the transport dangers. Residents vote against nuclear waste dump near Hawker in South Australia. Strong opposition to nuclear waste dump plan for Flinders Ranges. Kimba now the likely site for nuclear waste dump.
ENVIRONMENT. While ignorant tunnel-visioned politicians kowtow to irrigators, the Murray River system faces death. A foreign corporation gets 89 BILLION litres of Australia’s water, as drought worsens. Scott Morrison trashes the Environment Department.
RENEWABLE ENERGY. A lot of progress, – much information at https://reneweconomy.com.au
INTERNATIONAL
United States and Russia are on the verge of a new arms race, Nuclear War Simulator shows the devastation that nukes could cause.
The toxic gender norms in the nuclear weapons establishment.
Ethics of burdening developing countries with nuclear debts and nuclear wastes.
Devastating array of craters on the ocean floor, from nuclear tests.
Investigative journalism – Hazards of Russia’s nuclear colonialism– example South Africa. Docking problems for Russia’s nuclear ships.
Ominous forecast for Australia’s bushfire dangers
- The bushfire outlook from August warned of above-normal bushfire conditions for most of the east coast this summer, as well as parts of all states and the ACT
- Monday’s update expands the above-normal region further north in Queensland, across to northern Victoria and further along the Tasmanian coast
- Experts say the only thing that would change this outlook would be widespread rainfall, which is not likely this summer
The outlook was already bad, with above-normal fire potential for most of the east coast.We’re already dealing with a fire season for the record books — crews exhausted, millions of hectares burnt, scores of houses destroyed — but an update of the danger ahead paints an even more ominous picture.
Where is above normal?
Above-normal fire danger is expected for most of the east coast, eastern Tasmania, northern Victoria, Kangaroo Island and the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia, parts of south-west Western Australia and a patch up north.
But that doesn’t mean everywhere else is in the clear — for many areas of southern Australia, dangerous fires in summer are normal…..
Keep up to date with warnings from your local fire authority, ABC Radio and ABC Emergency on Facebook.
Australia, you have been warned. https://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-16/bushfire-outlook-update-makes-for-more-grim-reading/11802452
In the interests of the coal lobby, Australia sabotaged the UN climate talks
Australia took a match to UN climate talks while back home the country burned https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/dec/16/
australia-took-a-match-to-un-climate-talks-as-back-home-the-country-burned Julie-Anne Richards The gleeful coal lobby stalked the Madrid COP25 meeting halls as the Morrison government threw out compassion and international citizenship. I’ve been at the climate summit in Madrid for the past two weeks. The question I was constantly asked was: “What will it take for Australia to treat the climate crisis seriously?” International friends, colleagues and strangers looked on in horror at the effects of the bushfires and outright amazement at the Morrison government’s denial of the link between the fires and Australia’s coal industry, and seeming lack of concern at this extreme impact of climate change.
The ray of hope is the youth, demanding their future back. The rest of us have a responsibility to join them, to back their calls however we can. Force our government to show compassion. Demand genuine climate action. We can do this. Other governments are – New Zealand is showing us up. It is our government that is failing us, failing our neighbours, failing our youth. We’ve got no choice but to demand they act, and refuse to give up until they do. See you at a youth-led climate rally soon.
• Julie-Anne Richards is executive director of Climate Action Network Australia
Liberal-Party-dominated committee recommends removing Australia’s ban on nuclear power
The Energy Minister says there are no plans to lift the moratorium, and any lifting has to be bipartisan. Labor wrote a dissenting report so there seems to be no chance of bipartisanship.
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Parliamentary committee recommends lifting ban on modern nuclear power technology The Advertiser,14 Dec 19
Stopping short of a full go-ahead, the government-dominated committee called for more economic and scientific analysis…… However, Labor members of the committee said the economics did not stack up and it would be “irrational” to pursue nuclear power. “There is simply no case for wasting time and resources on a technology that is literally the slowest, most expensive, most dangerous, and least flexible form of new power generation,” committee deputy chair Josh Wilson and fellow Labor members said in a dissenting report. Labor and independent Zali Steggall both called for a national energy policy but the recommendation was struck down. “A national energy policy is an essential prerequisite to the consideration of lifting the moratorium on nuclear energy,” she said. Energy and Emissions Reduction Minister Angus Taylor, who initiated the inquiry, said the Government would take its time to consider the report. “The Government has no plans to lift the longstanding moratorium on nuclear energy,” he said. “Any changes … would need bipartisan support and broad community acceptance.” The committee, which received more than 300 submissions and held hearings around the country, made three broad recommendations. Firstly, it called for a holistic, strategic approach that would learn from international partners, identify opportunities, build bipartisanship and put “the community at the centre”. Secondly, the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation should be tasked with categorising nuclear into old and new technology — so-called Generation III+ and beyond which have in-built safety features. The Productivity Commission should look at economics and the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency at safety, waste, skills and governance. In addition an unspecified expert body should “educate and inform Australians”. Thirdly, the Federal Parliament should lift the ban on Generation III+ and beyond, conditional on the recommended scientific assessments. Finally, with state and territory government, the Commonwealth should commit to any approval only after “the prior informed consent of local impacted communities”.  |
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Pro nuclear nonsense from Geoff Russell – “we’re all toast without nuclear power”
Once again, New Matilda gave nuclear lobbyist Geoff Russell a forum for an attack on a critic of the nuclear industry. (Steggall’s Chicken On Nuclear Family, While Party Politics Buggers Inquiry, 16 Dec 19.) On this occasion, New Matilda was trashing a very mild nuclear critic, Zali Steggall.
So we’re “all toast” without nuclear power? This is nonsense. Even Geoff Russell knows that to get up and running the thousands of nuclear power plants that would be needed to stall global heating – would take decades. That means that, with the speed of global heating, nuclear power would be too late to make any difference. (And that’s if nuclear power really were effective against climate change – which it isn’t, when you consider the whole carbon emitting nuclear fuel cycle from uranium mining to deep disposal of wastes) Meanwhile, energy efficiency, wind and solar power, are quickly set up, quickly effective, and provide energy fuel that is genuinely zero carbon.
The world needs the insights of women at male-dominated climate conferences
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Climate conferences are male, pale and stale – it’s time to bring in women https://theconversation.com/climate-conferences-are-male-pale-and-stale-its-time-to-bring-in-women-128060 16 Dec 19, The COP25 climate meeting in Madrid concluded over the weekend. As in past meetings, the talks failed to make much progress on international climate action. And again, the views and needs of women were largely ignored.Among the aims of the COP, or conference of parties to the Paris Agreement, was working towards “ambitious and gender-inclusive climate action”. That is, recognising the need to integrate gender considerations into national and international climate action.
The first step to achieving this aim would be gender parity at international climate conferences such as the Madrid COP. While we don’t yet know how many of the 13,000 registered governmental delegates were women, based on past numbers they are unlikely to make up more than a quarter. This is not the only forum where the experiences of women are ignored. Our research, spanning Kenya, Cambodia and Vanuatu, has found women are working collectively to strengthen their communities in the face of climate change. But their knowledge about climate risk is dismissed by scientists and political leaders. Bridging climate awareness When women are excluded from local and national-level governance, the absence of their voices at regional and global levels, such as COP meetings, is virtually assured. Our work across Africa, Asia and the Pacific found scientists – generally male – lack awareness of the knowledge women hold about the local consequences of climate change. At the same time, those women had little access to scientific research. In places where the labour is divided by gender, women and men learn different things about the environment. Though the women in our research generally did not know about government policies or programs on climate change and disaster risk reduction, they were very aware of environmental change. In Kenya, the pastoralist women we spoke to are acutely aware of the link between their physical insecurity and extreme drought. Continue reading |
Bushfire near power plant (just as well it’s not a NUCLEAR power plant)
| Blaze burns near power plant as another fire destroys homes, SMH 17 Dec 19 |
| A fire that has burnt almost 400,000 hectares in the Hawkesbury is burning in the vicinity of a power station responsible for 10 per cent of NSW’s electricity. The area, north-west of Lithgow, is home to the Mount Piper Power Station, the fourth-largest in the state, and the Springvale coal mine. |
An emergency warning was issued for the Gospers Mountain fire about 4pm on Monday as it headed towards Wallerawang, Lidsdale and Blackmans Flat, in the state’s Central Tablelands.
This area, north-west of Lithgow, is home to the Mount Piper Power Station and the Springvale coal mine.
Mount Piper is the fourth-largest power station in the state and has large stockpiles of coal……
NSW RFS Inspector Ben Shepherd said crews were aware that the fire was burning just six kilometres east of the station, but believed there was “no current threat”. …. https://www.smh.com.au/environment/weather/blaze-approaches-power-plant-as-another-fire-destroys-homes-20191216-p53khc.html
Nuclear colonialism – a cautionary tale about Russia’s drive to export nuclear power to South Africa
costly projects such as the one pushed by Zuma typically make little economic sense for the purchasing countrySUMMARY
1 This month.
PETITION – To: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the Australian Labor Government
Chernobyl: The Lost Tapes – A good documentary on Chernobyl on SBS available On Demand for the next 3 weeks– https://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/tv-program/chernobyl-the-lost-tapes/235274195556
19 May – Webinar- Webinar: No Nuclear Weapons in Australia
Start: 2026-05-19 18:00:00 UTC Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney (GMT+10:00)
End: 2026-05-19 19:30:00 UTC Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney (GMT+10:00)
20 May – Webinar – The dangerous world of AUKUS, US, military occupation and suppression of dissent
National Webinar, 20th May, 2026, 6.30pm AEST. Confronting laws restricting/suppressing protest speech and action
Speakers: Former Sen. Rex Patrick, Lawyer Nick Hanna ,Arthur Rorris ,Jorgen Doyle, Sen David Shoebbridge,
Facilitator Kelley Tranter.
of the week – Australians for War Powers Reform (AWPR)
To see nuclear-related stories in greater depth and intensity
Antinuclear 