Oct. 11 Open Thread: Bloom Energy, the Gift That Keeps on Taking

Filed in Delaware, National, Open Thread by on October 11, 2018

With apologies to non-baseball fans, Delaware’s contract with Bloom Energy is like the deal the Phillies signed with aging slugger Ryan Howard — an exorbitant amount of guaranteed money for minimal production. Some people have been fighting the deal, which enlisted Delmarva Power to collect the funding from consumers instead of the government, ever since it was announced. Those folks, who include people John Nichols and the Caesar Rodney Institute, received another setback as the Public Utilities Commission said it was powerless (no pun intended) to review the agreement, which it agrees sucks. One big problem: Ending it would trigger a poison-pill provision that would sock every Delmarva household with a $700 bill to buy out Bloom.

Et tu, Fox? The White House has sprung into action to deal with a national emergency: Fox News is no longer televising Trump’s Nuremberg rallies in full because ratings for them have fallen hard, to the point that it was underperforming the channel’s regular programming. This is a huge blow to Republicans, who now can cater only to those who can read.

Never fear, though: USA Today apparently wants to join Fox in milking those sweet, sweet racism-and-xenophobia-and-misogyny bucks. They ran an op-ed piece by Trump on Medicare so filled with lies that they’ve been getting grief for it ever since. I find it fitting, because USA Today is to journalism as Trump is to the presidency.

The Georgia gubernatorial race, pitting a voting-rights activist Democrat against a Tea Party Republican, is even more interesting than it seems on the surface. Democrat Stacey Adams and Republican Brian Kemp have been battling each other for years, mostly in court, over Kemp’s role in purging African-Americans from the voting rolls as Secretary of State. He still holds that position and has refused to step down, probably because he’s responsible for using an illegal method to purge the rolls of 53,000 voters, 70% of them black, because their registration forms don’t exactly match other IDs. So if your last name is hyphenated or has an accent mark, and one form of ID doesn’t include it, you can’t vote.

In case you thought the Kavanaugh confirmation was a blow mainly against women, think again. Henry Giroux argues it’s another step down the road to neo-liberal Fascism. Giroux is a Democratic Socialist, so if you’re ever thought of quitting the Democrats for the Social Democrats, give this a read.

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  1. bamboozer says:

    Believe I will sign up for the Social Democrats as I tend to agree with them and the word Socialism holds no terror for me. Have not read Trump’s op ed, neither will I as I’m not in the mood for pathetic lies in quantity. Bloom Energy is yet another “pro business” sweet heart deal that seems poised to screw us all. Tra La, ’tis Delaware.

  2. RE Vanella says:

    I’m also a member of DSA. Welcome, comrade!

    May I also suggest, if you’re interested in activism/justice issues on a local level, please take a look at Network Delaware. Similar politics different strategies. Not a party, but I’d argue that in practice you’ll get a lot of bang for the buck.

    Plus Network is local. Closest DSA chapter is Philly. Great people up there through. They canvas for Medicare for All almost daily.

  3. RE Vanella says:

    I’m going to just leave this here. I’ve had the absolute privilege to meet and do actions with Ady.

    He’s very likely the strongest and bravest person I’ve ever met. I not kidding or exaggerating.

    Saw him a few weeks ago in DC. He won’t live very much longer in his failing body. But rest assured, Ady will live on.

    https://www.thenation.com/article/im-dying-here-is-what-i-refuse-to-accept-with-serenity/

  4. Rufus Y. Kneedog says:

    Ryan Howard at least had a track record of accomplishment upon which to base his salary and while his production tailed off, there was still some production there. With this it’s like we’re paying millions to a kid straight from High school who strikes out every time.

  5. RE Vanella says:

    Came across this. Felt it was appropriate for some reason. Maybe because we should talk about perspectives on power.

    Or maybe because my wife is also Irish.

    “‘My people’—the people who knew about oppression, discrimination, prejudice, poverty and the frustration and despair that they produce– were not Irish Americans. They were black, Puerto Ricans, Chicanos. And those who were supposed to be ‘my people’, the Irish Americans who knew about English misrule and the Famine and supported the civil rights movement at home, and knew that Partition and England were the cause of the problem, looked and sounded to me like Orangemen. They said exactly the same things about blacks that the loyalists said about us at home. In New York I was given the key to the city by the mayor, an honor not to be sneezed at. I gave it to the Black Panthers.” –Bernadette Devlin