Huge thanks to this month’s anonymous sponsor, who wishes me to lead with this public notice she spotted: “If special arrangements need to be made to accommodate residents with disabilities in order for them to participate in the public hearing, including a Spanish or Karen interpreter, please call…”
“Record marine heatwaves may signal a permanent shift in the oceans…
“Zhenzhong Zeng at the Southern University of Science and Technology in China says he is “very scared” by this potential regime shift in the oceans. “I think almost all of the Earth system model projections are wrong,” he says.”
“Major carbon sink may have vanished for a second year in a row…
“Hot and wet weather in 2024 – the hottest, wettest year on record – caused ecosystems on land to emit nearly as much carbon dioxide as they took out of the atmosphere, according to a preliminary analysis. This is the second year in a row in which the land carbon sink has nearly vanished…”
“Giant Prehistoric Whale Graveyard Revealed By Disappearing Glacier In The Russian Arctic.
“Scientists at Russia’s Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI) recently found the gathering of whale skeletons on Wilczek Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago, northern Russia, during the study of the region’s permafrost.”
“Reindeer Flee to Cities as the Arctic Bakes in Unprecedented Heatwave.
“A record-setting 14 days of extreme heat in Finland have triggered severe heat and wildfire warnings… Friday marked the 14th consecutive day that at least one part of Finland reached a temperature above 86 degrees Fahrenheit (30 degrees Celsius), according to the Finnish Meteorological Institute.”
https://gizmodo.com/reindeer-flee-to-cities-as-the-arctic-bakes-in-unprecedented-heatwave-2000634569
“…the Norwegian record for the most consecutive days > 30°C has just been broken with 13 days in Namsskogan (64.7°N) and Grong (64.3°N)!” [Thierry Goose]
“As a result the Sea Surface Temps are the same in the north of the Baltic sea that in the … Mediterranean sea in Marseille!” [Melaine Le Roy / Ventusky]
https://x.com/subfossilguy/status/1948674411277537659
“London’s Central Line Is Broiling City Commuters Daily…
“After registering the hottest June on record, England experienced three heat waves before the end of July. Below ground, however, weekday commuters have been facing the equivalent of nonstop heat wave conditions all summer…”
“Tré-la-Tête Glacier 2019 | 2025
“Glacier collapse in the Alps is so rapid that it is leaving behind glacier tongues that have been cut into several pieces. See what the former front of one of the largest glaciers of the Mont Blanc Massif now looks like.” [Melaine Le Roy]
https://x.com/subfossilguy/status/1948786045652259111
“Residents evacuated from homes in Spain after heavy flooding and hailstorms.
“In one of the worst hit towns, Caravaca de la Cruz, emergency services dealt with 82 incidents connected to hailstones, landslides and road blockages on Thursday, local authorities said. Thick layers of hail piled up on pavements and roads…”
“Italy has been hit by landslides caused by flash floods that have destroyed bridges, washed away cars and triggered an evacuation.
“Following powerful summer thunderstorms on Wednesday and Thursday, the picturesque Passiria Valley in northern Italy was flooded after over 100mm of rain fell in just a few hours.”
“Extreme heat hits Kosovo – 42.5°C in Klina, highest temperatures ever recorded.
“According to measurements from the State Network of Automatic Meteorological Stations, the highest temperature was recorded at Hani i Elezit, with 41.6°C, breaking all previous records. Other cities also faced scorching temperatures: Klina 42.5°C [108.5F], Gjakova 40.7°C, Rahovec 40.2°C, Suhareka 40.4°C, Prizren 40.3°C.”
“Thousands evacuated as wildfires sweep through southern Albania amid heatwave…
“Albania’s Defence Ministry has ordered the urgent evacuation of several villages in the southern municipality of Delvine after wildfires threatened homes and lives on Friday. The fires, intensified by the region’s third major heatwave this summer, have led to the displacement of approximately 2,000 residents…”
https://anewz.tv/world/world-news/11185/thousands-evacuated-as-wildfires-sweep-southern-albania/news
“Greek shipyard workers stop operations due to heatwave.
“The conditions were particularly tough for those who built and repaired vessels at the Piraeus port authority’s repair area, as they worked in the heat of the sun and near the flames from welding tools… “The last few summers have been very difficult,” Danil Polatsidis said, an electrician in the Perama shipyard.”
https://www.marinelink.com/blogs/blog/greek-shipyard-workers-stop-operations-due-to-heatwave-103076
“Turkey faces ‘truly great disaster’, warns Erdogan amid raging wildfires and sweltering temperatures across Europe…
“Turkey’s interior minister declared the western provinces of Izmir and Bilecik “disaster areas” after a month of fires in the country. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also said on Friday that the country faced “a truly great disaster” and that 25,000 people were involved in the emergency effort.”
“The national temperature record of Turkey has been broken in the Silopi district of Şırnak [50.5C / 122.9F].
“As the thermometer surpassed 50 degrees Celsius, life in the district came to a virtual standstill… The ongoing heat wave is setting new records across Turkey…. Due to the scorching weather, residents avoided going outside unless absolutely necessary.”
https://www.ekonomist.com.tr/haberler/silopi-de-sicaklik-rekoru-termometre-50-dereceyi-asti-62847
“Note: For the unfortunate situation we all know, Syria has no working weather stations in the Northeastern plains.
“It’s likely that the temperature exceeded 50C [122F] in places like Hassakah and Kamshili, thus breaking the national heat record.”
https://x.com/extremetemps/status/1948853328433348744
“Syria’s traditional agriculture nears collapse amid drought and crop failures.
“This year, Syria is experiencing one of the worst environmental and climatic disasters in its modern history. Climate change, chronic environmental degradation, and the long-term effects of prolonged war have combined to push the country into an agricultural crisis, which now threatens the lives of millions.”
https://www.newarab.com/features/syria-faces-collapse-traditional-agriculture-drought-rages
“Fohn winds ignite the skies of Iraq, and temperatures exceed 50 degrees Celsius in several regions.
“…temperatures will rise further, far exceeding what they are supposed to be… Baghdad and all regions of Iraq, as maximum temperatures will be between 49-51 degrees Celsius in the capital Baghdad and the northern regions, while they will reach the threshold of 50-52 degrees Celsius in the southern and desert regions.”
“Hundreds Protest in Babil, Iraq Over Severe Water Shortages Amid Scorching Heat.
“Iraqis protest worsening water crisis in Babil as drought deepens. With rivers drying and dams cutting flows, farmers abandon fields amid 60% drop in water reserves. UN warns of health disaster as tensions rise over Turkey/Iran dams.”
“Iran’s drought is creating a regime crisis.
“According to official reports, reserves in the capital’s main dams have plummeted to their lowest levels in a century, with a five-year drought and record-low rainfall cited as the main reasons. Despite repeated warnings from environmental experts, the government appears to have been unprepared…”
https://unherd.com/newsroom/irans-drought-is-creating-a-regime-crisis/?lang=us
“Hurricane in Astana [Kazakhstan]…
“A hurricane with rain passed through Astana. Some consequences of the storm wind are already known… We requested details from the capital’s police department and the Department of Emergency Situations. Earlier we wrote that a crane fell at one of the construction sites in Astana and the crane operator died.”
https://tengrinews.kz/accidents/uragan-v-astane-plita-ruhnula-na-avto-576401/
“Storms dump a year of rain on North China, Beijing braces for floods.
“Storms in northern China have poured nearly a year’s rainfall on Baoding, an industrial city on the doorstep of capital Beijing, forcing over 19,000 people out of their homes as streets began to go under water and roads were cut off. As much as 448.7 mm (17.7 inches) of rain fell… The rainfall set records at a number of weather stations in Hebei province…”
“Japan is experiencing another tortuously hot summer, with human-induced climate change driving up temperatures even in [northern] Hokkaido, where many people are not acclimated to heat…
“On Thursday, the mercury hit 39 [102.9F] degrees Celsius in Kitami, a city in eastern Hokkaido, at around 2:30 p.m. — a record high — and 13.5 C above a 30-year average.”
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/07/25/japan/northern-japan-heat-waves/
“EXTRAORDINARY HEAT IN SE ASIA – records smashed everywhere; unprecedented in July:
“THAILAND 36.5 [97.7F] Chawang; PHILIPPINES 36.2 Surigao, high MINS: 28.4 Cebu, 27.6 Catarman; INDONESIA 37.0 Palu, 35.2 Menado; High MINS 28.1 Manokwari; MALAYSIA High MINS: 27.8 Kudat. 27.4 Sandakan, 26.6 Sitiawan.”
https://x.com/extremetemps/status/1948730774095581617
“Indonesian authorities are accelerating efforts to tackle worsening forest and land fires, particularly in Riau province and other regions across Sumatra Island in the country’s western territories…
“”The haze from the forest fires is starting to affect neighboring countries, Malaysia and Singapore. They have expressed their concerns through diplomatic channels…””
https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202507/1339235.shtml
“Dozens dead as storm sweeps through the Philippines…
“Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. visited emergency shelters Thursday in Rizal province… He subsequently called an emergency meeting with disaster-response officials, warning that both the government and the public need to adapt to the increasing frequency and unpredictability of natural disasters due to climate change.”
“AUSTRALIA WITH HUGE CONTRASTS:
Record heat in Queensland; JULY MAX 35.9 [96.6F] Kowanyama; Record cold in Western Australia; JULY MINS: 3.9 [39F] Mandurah, 0.1 Cleve, JULY LOW MAXES: 15.0 Gerladton, 11.6 Jurien Bay, 9.5 Merredin, 8.0 Robe, 8.0 Cape Jaffa, 7.0 Padthaway South.”
https://x.com/extremetemps/status/1948882528875806997
“Peru’s guano coastal birds face crisis as population drops over 75%.
“Scientists along Peru’s central Pacific coast are sounding the alarm that more action is needed to protect seabirds, sea lions, and penguins as climate change, disease, and overfishing threaten their survival… “We are very alarmed by this sharp decline,” said Susana Cardenas…”
https://www.rte.ie/news/newslens/2025/0725/1525415-guano-birds-peru/
“Puerto Suarez [Bolivia doubled up! 38.4C [101.1F] again today and again hottest July day in history.
“Previous record was last year in July 2023 ,which in turn had broken the pre-previous by another full 1C. Record heat in Bolivia goes on for years.”
https://x.com/extremetemps/status/1948533902005731678
“Livestock sector faces difficulty after heavy rains [Venezuela].
“Edgar Medina of the National Association of Cattle Ranchers assured that ranchers and producers are working together to plan preventative measures and ensure livestock care.”
https://primicia.com.ve/economia/sector-ganadero-enfrenta-dificultades-tras-intensas-lluvias/
“A lingering heat dome over the eastern half of the U.S. is putting tens of millions of people in sweltering conditions, with the worst still to come….
“…as the coming days unfold, the southeastern U.S. will see several days of potentially record-setting heat, with nearly 150 million people—almost half the nation’s population—at major or extreme risk of heat effects on July 28.”
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/heat-dome-temperatures-may-break-records-in-eastern-u-s/
“New Mexico town hit with flash flooding for 3rd time this month; more thunderstorms forecast.
“Ruidoso, New Mexico, a mountain town located about 180 miles southeast of Albuquerque, has been hit hard by flash flooding for the third time in less than a month. Heavy rainfall inundated the area on Thursday, July 24, causing road closures, widespread damage and water rescues.”
“Chicago slammed with flash flooding after 5 inches of rain fall in few hours.
“Chicago’s Midway Airport reported 1.5 inches of rain in just 37 minutes. Within 90 minutes, the airport reported 2.77 inches of rain. Drivers on Interstate 55 were met with flooded roads, one video showed.”
https://www.foxweather.com/extreme-weather/chicago-flash-flooding-midway
“A Third of Slum Dwellers at Risk of ‘Disastrous’ Floods.
“Close to 900 million people across the Global South live in densely packed urban slums, which often sit in floodplains. A new study finds that one in three slum dwellers is at risk of “disastrous” flooding, a risk that is set to grow as warming spurs more intense rainfall around the world.”
https://e360.yale.edu/digest/slum-flood-risk
“Unprecedented continental drying, shrinking freshwater availability, and increasing land contributions to sea level rise…
“Since 2002, 75% of the population lives in 101 countries that have been losing freshwater water. Furthermore, the continents now contribute more freshwater to sea level rise than the ice sheets, and drying regions now contribute more than land glaciers and ice caps.”
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adx0298
“As of the latest CERES data for May, 2025, the 36-month running mean for the Earth energy imbalance grew slightly to 11.36 Hiroshimas per second.
“That’s roughly 980,000 Hiroshimas per day in planetary warming.
“Hot times ahead!” [Prof Eliot Jacobson]
https://x.com/EliotJacobson/status/1948401501866799190
“Breaking News! Code Yikes!
“The latest data from CERES just dropped for May, 2025, and the 36-month running average for albedo (reflectivity) hit yet another record low, now down to 28.711%.
“Even darker times ahead!” [Prof Eliot Jacobson]
https://x.com/EliotJacobson/status/1948399211160199193
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You can read the previous “Climate” thread here. I’ll be back on Monday with an “Economic” thread.
Well, thoughts of pity for wildlife (of what is left, that is) of the world that are being wiped out due to climatic upheaval. Justin posted two on Finland’s Rain Deer and Peru’s coastal birds. The Rain Deer fleeing to the cities to seek relief of the heat and search for water struck me rather ironic and would make a “On the Far Side” cartoon. Picture two Rain Deer being seated in a restaurant served water and requesting the Air Conditioning to be more comfortable…
Here in the US , Network news is featuring the heat dome as the lead story for the past week. 130 million souls suffering and cranking the a/c units.
That’s the extend of climate coverage….
As Professor Eliot Jacobson wrote “Hot times ahead”
Vince, it’s always painful to read about the poor creatures, unwitting passengers on Homo Saps’ crazy train to nowhere.
We may be seeing the start of a runaway in albedo decline – ocean darkening, reflective cloud formation, sea ice area and ice darkening effects all show reinforcing feedbacks from temperature rise. The first two of these are things only noticed since about 2010 or later. If so emissions aren’t ntctssarily the main driving force for warming anymore.
According to the Google AI (which is A but definitely not I from what I’ve seen) a 1% change in albedo is comparable to a doubling in CO2 and it’s currently dropping at just under 0.1 per year.
George there was definitely a dislocation circa 2010 and then a worse one in 2023.
Life keeps me so busy these days that I don’t have much time to dwell on the ramifications but, my goodness, when I stop to think about it, what a thing it is to be cresting the lift-hill of the climate rollercoaster and starting to accelerate.
A 36 month running average is a lagging indicator so the recent acceleration could have started in 2020 or a bit earlier – i.e. when vessels started to install scrubbers or switch to low sulphur fuel and ignition systems after the new maritime emission rules were announced. It would also coincide with when darkening of the oceans became a significant effect and when Antarctic sea ice loss accelerated.
So if linear (it’s not) it would double in 10 years. Yeah, the end is not far off for homo stupidus.
Hello Pan
More and more of your posts are about drought and drinking water scarcity in all kinds of areas.
Today a very good longread on this topic in your selection. It is a very long piece.
I summarised it for myself as the impetus for an article series on “hydrological predation” . I share it briefly on your platform
It seems to me that this “creeping” crisis may well be a tipping point with mitigating consequences even before the fossil energy crisis’. Climate and water availability are also completely absent from the “predictions of the club of Rome” unless they conveniently group it under “resources” but this is of a different order.
Global water crisis accelerates: when “almost” turns into system failure
The earth is drying out. Not just on the surface, but deep inside. New scientific data, published in Science Advances, show that the world has been losing water from its deep ground layers – the so-called aquifers – on a large scale since 2002. These are not temporary droughts, but a structural loss of irreparable freshwater on a continental scale. And that loss is accelerating.
According to the study, the Earth is losing net freshwater annually at a rate that contributes to sea level rise – even more so than the melting of Greenland’s or Antarctica’s ice caps. This water shift is largely due to intensive groundwater abstraction in agricultural areas, especially in India, China, the US, Iran, Pakistan and Mexico. These are countries that together feed hundreds of millions of people – based on water that in many cases was stored thousands of years ago and does not renew itself.
Creeping transition
What makes this crisis so insidious is that it does not start with an abrupt disaster, but with a series of marginal deteriorations: pumps having to go deeper, farmers using extra diesel, cities bringing in water from other regions. But as soon as the groundwater level drops below a certain point, the system shifts rapidly: crops fail, farms close, waves of migration emerge.
Scientists now speak of several “drought megaregions”, including:Southwest North America/Mexico, Northern China/Mongolia, Iran to Central Asia, The Mediterranean
Economic and social impacts
The immediate consequences are food insecurity and economic decline. When water is no longer available for agriculture, entire export chains become unstable. Think cotton from India, tomatoes from Spain, almonds from California. But megacities such as Tehran, Jakarta and Mexico City also face subsidence, salinisation, and physical unlivability.
At the same time, indirect effects arise: rising food prices, social unrest, increased domestic and cross-border migration. In fragile states, water shortages can be the final push towards destabilisation or conflict.
Container policy versus reality
Although international organisations have been warning about water scarcity for years, policy responses remain vague and inadequate. Solutions such as ‘smart irrigation’, ‘water pricing’ and ‘reuse’ sound good, but do not address the core issue: a growth-based economy that consumes more water than is available.
Most aquifers are already technically over-exploited. In many areas, the recharge time of deep groundwater is not decades, but centuries to millennia. What disappears is gone forever.
When does “almost” become too late?
The World Resources Institute estimates that by 2030, more than 3 billion people will live in areas with structural freshwater shortages. Scientists such as Tom Gleeson and Jay Famiglietti warn that the first hydrological crashes – where regions or sectors cease to function economically because of water shortages – could become apparent within 10 to 15 years.
And then it will no longer be a story of “optimisation” or “adaptation”, but of collapse: of harvests, of cities, of state finances, of order
To conclude
The water crisis is not a future problem. It is already here, just not yet visible everywhere at once. But once several regions reach the tipping point at the same time, a cascade will develop that cannot be absorbed by conventional policies. It will then no longer be about saving crops, but about saving societies.
The word ‘almost’ will then have become meaningless. What remains is drought. And silence.
Much appreciated, Zip. Sharing.
“…the first hydrological crashes – where regions or sectors cease to function economically because of water shortages – could become apparent within 10 to 15 years.” Do you really think it will take that long? I don’t.
I agree with you Kassandra, I have pencilled in 2027 as the final year.
It’s hard to believe global politics, economic chit-chat, still use 2050 as a mythical target date.
Meanwhile the clinically insane appear to have cornered global assets and are flexing their power, projecting wild fantasies of Sovereign Cities, AI, and ethnic cleansing.
Yes Cassandra that could….take Tehran or Baghdad… those are high on the list….
The tipping point?
According to some researchers, the tipping point lies at:
30% food price inflation combined with heat stress
3 consecutive weeks without regular supplies to urban markets
When that happens, the city turns from energy consumer and distribution centre into an implosive entropy bubble. And that, in a country with oil and gas infrastructure, could also lead to sabotage, pipeline explosions, occupation of terminals, etc.
Many thanks for that cogent summary, Zip, and for two new terms to add to my doomer lexicon: “hydrological crash” and “implosive entropy bubble”.
The elephant in the room for many of these water stressed regions is the amount of humans relative to resources. Egypt springs immediately to mind, especially as the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam might impose further constraints on their supply. Egypt is unusual in actively implementing strategies and campaigns to limit its population growth. An interesting video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEMV94N2Vw8
I’m not sure it’s a “creeping transition” – that scary NASA graph posted here a couple of weeks ago showed a four or five fold increase in drought and flood intensity since 2020, after it looked pretty steady for the previous two decades.
As an example of the disconnect, an elderly couple from Houston bought a (second) home on 2 acres on the (dry) river just up from us. First, they overpaid because they could. Then put in a pool! Then drilled a well b/c the shared well (w two neighbors) wasn’t cutting it. But did they install rain collection? No. Do they show any signs of an understanding of the state of the world. No. To wit, I looked at the wife with a blank stare when she lamented about the dry riverbed with all the grass and such growing… can’t something be done about that, shouldn’t we remove it? I wanted to scream ‘are you fucking kidding me?’ Instead, I turned my gaze to the ground and shook my head.
Meanwhile my oldest brother is sweltering in Romania, says the ac can only cool to 83, running continuously with temps of 104 & 108. Yeah, it’s happening, it’s going down.
Cassandra, I’m squarely in the camp with you and all who think the collapse will happen sooner than later… make that ‘it’s happening NOW’
The cognitive dissonance can certainly be disorientating when the bulk of the population is carrying on as normal, oblivious to the scale and imminence of our looming catastrophe, Texas Guy. It can give life a surreal, nightmarish quality at times:
“…if current climate trends continue, courses could face an existential threat. Rising water costs and limited or restricted water usage could make operating a golf course unsustainable.”
https://golf.com/news/features/what-happens-golf-courses-water-increasingly-limited/
You read articles like this and wonder if the author has any inkling that we face an existential threat.
RIP Ozzy. Gone and left us right when real life is turning as metal as his music.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEfIRWf6Zlc
“The duet that nobody asked for…and probably didn’t need.” 😂 And yet it works wonderfully. RIP, Donna Summer, too.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxSH9mi3jRk
That takes me back to my disco dancing days in the 70s. Donna Summer!
Only 5% of the US population are science literate. The rest believe what Trump tells them. WASF.
As George Carlin once said, Sissyfuss, “Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.”
And even amongst the very smart humans there is not much wisdom, unfortunately.
I totally agree with you Cassandra we do not have long. Texas guy i can totally relate to you. I had one discussion with a neighbor he was going on about ai stuff. I said how do you think that ai runs if your dams are 100 years old and falling apart and water which is disappearing it cant? I got no response back. I am from Colorado and the west is drying up. I also have an aunt in pheonix. Its doesn’t look good at all and it’s gonna come crashing down sooner than later. This whole ai push is going to collapse the entire system soon.
Yes, Heather, you have a “luxury” problem in Texas compared to the real “water stress hotspots.”
From luxury crisis to life crisis – how water makes the difference between system stress and system collapse
Texas: crisis in abundance In Texas, California, and other parts of the western US, the effects of drought, overuse of aquifers, and infrastructure decay are visible. But the crisis there is paradoxical: people have wanted to build, run, cool, and mine too much.
Data centers, bitcoin, AI clusters, air conditioning, hyperscale agriculture – these are phenomena of a civilization suffering from choice overload. The dams are not bursting, they are aging. Water supplies are not drying up acutely, they are being diverted to where the money is. Cities are creaking, but they are not falling.
I
ran and Iraq: crisis in the conditions of existence In Iran and Iraq, it is different. There, water is disappearing from the deepest layers. The ground is literally sinking. Lakes are disappearing, rivers are shrinking to mud streams. Farmers are migrating to cities where there are no longer any facilities.
Water shortage there means:
No drinking water
No agriculture
No cooling capacity
No public order
In Tehran and Baghdad, the water is running out before the future begins. What remains is improvisation, repression, or flight. There are no debates about technology, but queues for tankers. No elections about grid charges, but cities without power, without bread, without soil.
From system stress to system collapse The difference is fundamental:
In Texas: overconsumption leads to tensions, but the system has reserves.
In Iran: structural depletion leads to collapse, with no way back.
One system is struggling with luxury crises. The other is on its way to existential shortages. Those who fail to see the difference confuse inconvenience with doom.
Excuse me water sources are drying up i have a water resources degree and geology degree and have been following these topics for years. The dams are falling apart from within for many reasons. Don’t insult my intelligence on this topic.
I am not insulting you at all, nor do I doubt your ‘scientific overview’ of water stress.
All the more reason to agree with me that there is a big difference between people who can still book a ‘summer vacation’ or ‘cruise’ in the Mediterranean and people who have to walk miles every day or stand in line to get drinking water.
Yeah and all of those people booking cruises during the peak of summer cruises are complaining of the heat and big crowds. The cruise lines demise will not be pretty. Yes i do agree with you. . The west is spoiled and it’s going to end much sooner than later which is also my point to. They are hiding how bad the economy is here and how bad the environmental degradation and infrastructure collapse too.
Zip “In Texas: overconsumption leads to tensions, but the system has reserves.” that will be heartening for Musk
He is getting a head start on his Sovereign City “SpaceX wants to make Starbase a recognized city”
A city would need to create its own charter, provide services, create local ordinances and levy taxes. It could also shift the tax burden on residences or businesses.
“If you create your own city, and it’s a relatively small area now, you have kind of control over that area”
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/elon-musk-texas-starbase-spacex-b2664545.html
Palantir are there as well
Let’s connect AI and water scarcity.
Sovereignty for sale: from Starbase to Port Sudan
Welcome to the 21st century, where it is no longer nations that are reshaping the world, but companies and petro-monarchs seeking space, control, and a way out of their own systemic logic. Whether it’s Elon Musk declaring his Starbase in Texas a city, or the Saudis settling in Port Sudan as if it were a logistics resort, we are witnessing a new form of colonization. No flag on the moon, but a digital pole in the desert, a water well on the Red Sea, or a solar panel park with a city center.
On the one hand: Musk, the tech messiah with rocket visions. Starbase is to become a city. Not just any city, but a “chartered city” where laws are fluid, taxes are self-made, and infrastructure is technologically sublime. In fact: a libertarian experiment on American soil, with solar energy, rockets, and data centers as its holy trinity. The dream? Autonomy. The reality? Control.
On the other side: Saudi Arabia. No techno-utopia, but pure geopolitics. Sudan is reeling from internal strife, and Port Sudan is strategically located: access to the Red Sea, food production, maritime routes. For the Saudis, this is not a city, but an overseas lung, a valve against the heat, drought, and chaos in their own country. They are building ports, buying agricultural land, installing surveillance systems.
The dream? Security. The reality? Neocolonial extraction.
Both projects are attempts to control the future by redrawing the map. Both suggest order, innovation, progress. But beneath the surface: privatization of power, blurring of borders, replacement of democratic governance by algorithms and contracts.
Starbase and Port Sudan are scenarios for the future. They herald a world in which sovereignty is no longer born of the people or the constitution, but is bought, labeled, and managed by those who control energy, data, and drones.
Welcome to the era of the sovereign enclave.
It’s okay, Zip, we are going to be … rewired
We’ll never notice it all
Think this is the best conspiracy theory ever!
https://similarworlds.com/technology/5357147-EX-CIA-whistleblower-comes-forward-and-warns-us-all-about
“Most human central nervous systems and brains have been infiltrated, manipulated and forever altered.”
Mad Hatter, they have certainly been infiltrated and forever altered. From Paul Beckwith’s latest video summary: “Human Brains are Now 99.5% Human and 0.5% Plastic. That is 7 grams of plastic… As AI becomes more human-like, our brains become more plastic. How many forks will kill us?”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZpSBn6ORBw
Which makes one wonder, “How do you grow (in Texas, no less) SAF when the most vital ingredient for growing it is unsustainable?”
https://farm-energy.extension.org/water-use-and-sustainable-biofuel-production/
The logic is simple for a society besotted by its love of machines: take the dwindling supplies of water, arable land, fossil fuel-derived fertilizer, and food crops to provide fuel to keep the labor-saving machines busy and let the surplus population starve.
I saw on a tv that ATV’s are Fun! (Unfortunately there’s no SPF lotion nature can apply to protect it from mankind’s unending funburn).
https://www.colorado.com/articles/ohv-101-your-beginners-guide-colorado-roading
Note that despite the Miles of habitat destroyed to accommodate an unending stream of polluting vehicles, they still call it “wilderness” without a single customer noticing the irony.
Rob, I once spent a few days at a Center Parc holiday resort down in Wiltshire.
These places sell themselves as offering an opportunity to get out in nature, but the woodlands in which they sit were originally planted as commercial forests, so the trees are all unsettlingly equidistant. The car parks are airport-huge and you have up to 7,000 humans crammed into just 400 acres, along with multiple restaurants, sports facilities and the accommodation lodges.
I guess from one perspective it is just wholesome, family fun but it really pained me to see nature so utterly sterile and commodified.
https://youtu.be/golizhT281E?si=i5IVOO92_IIE_-BJ
Arizona and water and power and ai
Excellent discussion here today!
Doomers are dooming today.
Wonder what could be causing extreme heat & flooding? The forbidden
over-word?
Overshoot, overuse, overconsumption, NTHE will help the 5% micro plastic baboon brains get over it.
It’s calming to watch a species suffer the consequences, slowly taking effect, that it created. Congratulations, a job well done!
Doomers are indeed dooming today, TR. Thank you, all, so much for the comments. I always enjoy the engagement.
Thank you for the plastics video, Pan.
I like his ‘this does not prove nano plastics cause dementia’. All we can ever gather is evidence to support a theory and this is definitely a starting point.
Pity we are not doing more to eliminate plastics and, of course, I am thinking New Mexico, and the elimination of regulations in USA.
Yet more reason to stop eating meat, and pretend meat!
Streuth, I need to grow more beans! 😂
Breaking news!
President fraudster, sexual assaulter will be reducing prescriptions by 1000%. If one’s prescription is $100, it will be free & they will be getting a $900 rebate. Now that’s the way to be president.
I am going to start addressing everyone here as Doomy Dudes & Dolls. 😉
Just watching this, Gary Stevenson talking about the clinical insanity of (some) people with money and saying how it is so much healthier and sane to care about your society (and, at least, pay taxes)
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=iD2sPL7k98c