The Blackout: It's Intellectual

So what did the temporary electricity problem show us?

It underscores how shortsighted and cognitively blacked out many Democrats -- and Republicans for not defending themselves properly on this issue (what did Aristotle say about a person who could defend himself physically but not with reason???) -- media personnel, and modern "intellectuals" are. And how they have, let's say, ignored the investment need of the mind in the study of logic.

The event is used as another opportunity to throw more shackles on the body and mind of America, and as another opportunity to attack America.

From "Democrats Rip Bush on Blackout," by Mike Glover, the Associated Press:

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (Aug. 16) - The Democratic presidential contenders blamed President Bush Friday for the massive blackout in the northeastern United States, saying the White House's refusal to invest in the nation's infrastructure caused the problem.

``It underscores a blackout in this administration on energy policies,'' Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry said. ``They have ignored the investment needs of our infrastructure in favor of a tax cut for the wealthy.''

...

While no one has yet pinpointed a cause, Democrats were quick to bash Bush.

Missouri Rep. Richard Gephardt argued that the blackouts can be linked to flaws in Bush and the Republican party's energy policy. ``These events illustrate how shortsighted the Bush administration and Republican-controlled Congress were in 2001 when they rejected modernization of our nation's power grid,'' Gephardt said.

And this nonsense, from "U.S. Is Energy Glutton," by Calvin Woodward, the Associated Press

WASHINGTON (Aug. 15) - As a rule, Americans can't take the heat in summer. Or the cold in winter. Or inconvenience any time. The delicious shock of chilled air on a sweltering day is a tonic not to be denied and they'll do everything in their overtaxed power grids to get it.

By world standards, the United States is an electricity glutton, using one-quarter of the power consumed everywhere and far more than any other country. As power again thrummed through cables deadened by the historic blackout, no one expected that to change fast.

The emphasis Friday was on getting past the immediate power crunch and, over the longer term, making power systems more reliable so Americans can go on getting as much as they want.

...

...From his home in New York City, where he was struck by the ''party atmosphere'' of the blackout Thursday, the secretary general of last year's United Nations summit on sustainable development said Americans have not been pushed to accept inconvenience.

''The focus in the United States has been not in terms of changing how people live but improving the efficiency of use,'' said Nitan Desai, a UN undersecretary-general from India.

Or are there some news articles and shows with a rational view -- an application of induction and context to understanding the electric problem -- that I have not seen???

Is there someone pointing out how we do not know the cause yet -- and discussing causality, the nature of explanation, the logical fallacy of hasty generalization, the problems caused by false accusation, the importance of seeing the big picture in understanding any issue, the problems (and destruction) caused by false accusation and by acting on something that isn't true, and giving historical examples of each of these important topics???

Is there someone saying Sen. John Kerry is drawing conclusions he has no grounds whatsoever to make? And that he is going further to attack people based on his false conclusions? That his conclusions and accusations have no bearing on reality and therefore should be dismissed as having the same cognitive standing as the ramblings of a parrot?

Is there any reference to or reverence of reality and truth in this issue???

In the mean time, I'm going to enjoy my AC. In fact, I think I'll crank it down a bit for my cat's comfort while I guzzle some gas going to see my horse -- heck, I'm paying for it, I've earned it, and I'm contracting with people who can produce it. We created the electricity, we own it, and can use it as we please, with the blessings of happiness and morality. Amen.

Posted by Cyrano at August 16, 2003 11:18 AM