Seagulls
The investment strategy being pulled into America’s culture wars : NPR
In Florida, a state board chaired by Gov. Ron DeSantis recently barred investment fund managers and advisors from considering "social, political, or ideological interests" when making decisions for Florida's retirement system. In Texas and West Virginia, GOP leaders say they will block investors from state business who they claim "boycott" the fossil fuel industry. Fifteen other states are considering similar measures. And Republicans have said that if they retake Congress in the midterms, they plan to push federal legislation to curtail investment decisions they attack as "woke."
Anti-ESG Republicans say big financial firms are abusing their power to advance a liberal agenda on issues like diversity, social justice and, especially, climate change.
Many experts disagree, saying Republicans are distorting the goals and strategies of ESG investing.
It's hard for most people to get a clear read of what ESG is amid the overheated rhetoric. Is the idea to bring about social changes that couldn't be achieved at the ballot box? And what does it mean for things like your 401K when investors follow ESG principles.
This FAQ is for anyone who wants to better understand an investing trend that is becoming core to global financial markets and a new battlefront in American politics — including, possibly, in your own state.
I am not a big of ESG investing, because I think it increases risk by reducing diversification. It also encourages businesses to mix politics with sound economic decisions. While some businesses may benefit from catering and marketing to socially-conscience consumers, there is no guarantee that an ESG business will be more profitable then a non-ESG business. Businesses that are ultimately sustainable, consider social and environmental impacts of their business -- not because it drives up their stock value -- but because it's good policy.
Over the past 5 years, you would have gained nearly 20 percent more in gains, if you invested in a broad index fund like VTI (60%) rather then their ESGV (43%) fund. That's a pretty big spread. People invest to save for retirement, owning land, or whatever their financial goals are. But I just don't think politics should be involved, especially when it seems like such a self-defeating behavior that leads to reduced returns.
This should be the absolute peak of hurricane season—but it’s dead quiet out there | Ars Technica
To state the obvious: This has been an unorthodox Atlantic hurricane season.
Everyone from the US agency devoted to studying weather, oceans, and the atmosphere—the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration—to the most highly regarded hurricane professionals predicted a season with above-normal to well above-normal activity.
For example, NOAA’s outlook for the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to November 30, predicted a 65 percent chance of an above-normal season, a 25 percent chance of a near-normal season, and a 10 percent chance of a below-normal season. The primary factor behind these predictions was an expectation that La Ni?a would persist in the Pacific Ocean, leading to atmospheric conditions in the tropical Atlantic more favorable to storm formation and intensification. La Ni?a has persisted, but the storms still have not come in bunches.
One Year Ago During the Week of September 12
Last year …
On Monday 09/13/21 we had humid , partly sunny 🌞 and rain showers 🌦 with high of 73 and a low of 55, which is three degrees below normal.
On Tuesday 09/14/21 we had partly sunny 🌞 with high of 73 and a low of 50, which is two degrees below normal.
On Wednesday 09/15/21 we had rain 🌧 with high of 80 and a low of 60, which is five degrees above normal.
On Thursday 09/16/21 we had partly sunny 🌞 and rain showers 🌦 with high of 74 and a low of 56, which is a degree below normal.
On Friday 09/17/21 we had partly cloudy 🌤 and patches of fog 🌤 with high of 73 and a low of 61, which is a degree below normal.
On Saturday 09/18/21 we had humid 🌤, partly cloudy 🌤 and patches of fog 🌤 with high of 81 and a low of 57, which is seven degrees above normal.
On Sunday 09/19/21 we had sunny 🌞 with high of 69 and a low of 51, which is four degrees below normal.
Weather Update – September 12, 2022
Rain and mild the next few days 🌧 and then a breath of autumn 🍂
Summer can’t last forever, the days keep getting shorter and shorter. I like the cooler weather, especially with less humidity and hopefully some crisp fall days before the snow, salt and winter comes.
| Today. Feels like … August 28th. |
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Patchy drizzle before 9am, then a slight chance of showers after 2pm. Partly sunny. Calm wind. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
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80 degrees | 68 max dew point | 7:12 sunset |
| Tonight. Muggy ! |
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Showers likely. Calm wind. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
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66 degrees | 68 max dew point | 6:31 sunrise |
| Tuesday. Feels like … September 8th. |
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Showers and possibly a thunderstorm. Some of the storms could produce heavy rain. High near 77. Calm wind becoming west 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
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77 degrees | 70 max dew point | 7:10 sunset |
| Tuesday Night. Feels like … September 6th. |
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Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm before 8pm. Partly cloudy. Light west wind. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
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56 degrees | 6:33 sunrise |
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| Wednesday. Feels like … September 11th. |
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Mostly sunny. West wind 6 to 11 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph.
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76 degrees | 60 max dew point | 7:08 sunset |
| Wednesday Night. Feels like … September 19th. |
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Mostly clear.
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51 degrees | 6:34 sunrise |
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| Thursday. Feels like … September 30th. |
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Sunny.
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68 degrees | 50 max dew point | 7:07 sunset |
| Thursday Night. Feels like … September 29th. |
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Mostly clear.
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47 degrees | 6:35 sunrise |
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| Friday. Feels like … September 26th. |
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Sunny.
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70 degrees | 47 max dew point | 7:05 sunset |
| Friday Night. Feels like … September 24th. |
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Partly cloudy.
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49 degrees | 6:36 sunrise |
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| Saturday. Feels like … September 14th. |
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Mostly sunny.
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75 degrees | 53 max dew point | 7:03 sunset |
| Saturday Night. Feels like … September 14th. |
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Partly cloudy.
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53 degrees | 6:37 sunrise |
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| Sunday. Feels like … September 8th. |
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Mostly sunny.
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77 degrees | 60 max dew point | 7:01 sunset |
Daily Update – September 12, 2022
Good morning! A Sticky, Muggy Monday in September. 😰
It really feels like a swamp outside today. Maybe some drizzle but it’s really all about the humidity today. Autumn, what’s right? Feels more like a damp summer day.
Cloudy with rain sprinkles, humid and 63 degrees in Delmar, NY. ☔ Calm wind. The dew point is 62 degrees. The skies will clear around noontime.
Dropped my phone 🤳 twice this morning on my walk down to the express bus 🚍. My hands 👐 are wet from the sweat and I kept getting tangled in the headphones. 🎧 I should get a replacement for the Bluetooth headphones but they never have anyone in electronics at Wally World. Plus the emails keep rolling in while I walk down to the bus. 📧
I did get shopping last night at Wally World, 🍔 getting a bunch of groceries, which like every week was more expensive then last. 🤑 And they have more stuff locked up. But I like still like how they have more bulk packaged stuff then the grocery store, which means less stuff that I end up having to get rid of 🔥 or take to the transfer station for recycling. I was very happy that I was able to get hot sauce in plastic container, ♻️ as I really hate glass, as I worry about breaking it, and it takes a lot of room and weight in the recycling. Plus I’m very dubious about glass recycling. Seems like a lot of trash dumps in the woods are just full of glass. 🍾
The weekend came and went. 🕊 It was there until I blinked my eyes 👀 and it was gone. I did enjoy the relaxed final weekend trip out to Thacher Park. I enjoyed the six Saturdays I spent up at Thacher Park, and while there is one more Nature Bus 🚌 the week of September 25th, I will probably be heading up to the Adirondacks. I enjoy having a Saturday to explore the park and back roads, lay in the hammock, do some reading and hike. Saturday, I hiked over 15 miles. Sunday with the clouds and rain, I did far less hiking around.
After listening to that podcast about pack goats 🐐 my fascination with them continues. I read a book about goat farming a while back, I think it was last summer, and they seem like a useful animal on the farmstead, to say nothing about hiking. Much easier to bring on a trip then a dog, as they don’t have the water needs and browse their own forages. Plus they are great for cleaning up overgrown areas in the woods. Or at least I’ve been brandwashed by Marc Warnke. 🧠 I do remember how stinky buck goats can get when they spray themselves with urine so to attract females.
Plaintiff drops case over Hefty Recycling bag marketing – Resource Recycling
Apparently plastic garbage bags are a real problem for MRFs even thought they are clean. After compaction in garbage trucks they get all tangled up in the sorting machines that normally use free floating materials to sort out the valuable scrap.